Black History Month
2021 Theme: “Voting Rights & Voter Suppression in the Black Community”
Click here for more information and resources gathered by the Black History Month committee.
Common Read: All members of the HCC community are invited to read the book One Person, No Vote by Carol Anderson as part of a campus community read. Copies of the book are available for free as an ebook through the HCC Library. Gaylord Saulsberry will be leading a community discussion on the history of voting rights and Carol Anderson's book on Tuesday, Feb. 23 from 1 - 2:30 p.m.
Fundraiser: Support the cause! Every year the Black History Month Committee commits to developing a fundraiser to support the Black Student Alliance (BSA) Award, given to an upstanding member of the BSA each academic year. This year we have created a t-shirt fundraiser with a unique HCC design as a way for our community to join together and support this great cause.
In a collaboration with the HCC Foundation, we have opened a shop on Bonfire where members can purchase a t-shirt, sweatshirt, or hoodie in support of the award. These items are not limited to the HCC community – please share with your friends and family members!
events
Feb. 2, 2021
7 – 8:30 p.m.
Historically Speaking: Four Hundred Souls - A Conversation With Ibram Kendi & Keisha N. Blain
Renowned scholars Ibram X. Kendi, author of How to Be an Antiracist, and Keisha N. Blain, author of Set the World on Fire, have assembled 90 extraordinary writers to document the four-hundred-year journey of African Americans from 1619 to the present. Entitled Four Hundred Souls, each contributor writes about a five-year period of 400 years of American history using essays, short stories, personal vignettes, and fiery polemics. They approach history from various perspectives: through the eyes of towering historical icons, the untold stories of ordinary people, as well as landmarks, laws, and artifacts. An extraordinary, moderated discussion featuring editors Kendi and Blain will focus on historic eras such as Slavery, Reconstruction, and Segregation, and their sustained impact on the United States.
Contributors Herb Boyd, City University of New York, Kali Nicole, Gross, Emory University, Peniel Joseph, University of Texas, and Annette Gordon Reed, Harvard University will join Prof. Kendi and Prof. Blain in a discussion about the impact of the African American community on social justice trajectory of American History. Mary N. Elliot, NMAAHC curator will moderate.
Feb. 5, 2021
2:30 p.m.
Watch: The Life of Fannie Lou Hamer: Never Turn Back
We witness the moving story of a valiant heroine of the Civil Rights struggle in Mississippi. Her courage inspired the poor and voiceless to demand the vote and to finally achieve political power. Her triumph is measured by the Black men and women who now take their rightful seats in City Halls, State Legislatures, and the U.S. Congress.
Feb. 10, 2021
11 a.m.
The Legacy of Poor Health: Communities of Color From 1619 to COVID
HCC anthropology professor Vanessa Martinez, Ph.D., will share important data regarding the legacy of American racism and how it amplifies the challenges of living during COVID-19, especially for communities of color. By using a historical anti-racist perspective and health equity lens, she will share some concrete ways we can improve the lives of our most vulnerable communities.
Feb. 12, 2021
7 p.m.
Watch: The Life of Fannie Lou Hamer: Never Turn Back
We witness the moving story of a valiant heroine of the Civil Rights struggle in Mississippi. Her courage inspired the poor and voiceless to demand the vote and to finally achieve political power. Her triumph is measured by the Black men and women who now take their rightful seats in City Halls, State Legislatures, and the U.S. Congress.
Feb. 16, 2021
2:30 p.m.
Watch: Rigged: The Voter Suppression Playbook
Narrated by Jeffrey Wright, Rigged chronicles how our right to vote is being undercut by a decade of dirty tricks – including the partisan use of gerrymandering and voter purges, and the gutting of the Voting Rights Act by the Supreme Court. The film captures real-time voter purges in North Carolina and voter intimidation in Texas.
Feb. 16, 2021
4 p.m.
Black History Month Trivia
Test your Black History Month knowledge and win your choice of a shirt or sweatshirt from the BHM fundraiser. Everyone is invited, including staff and faculty.
Feb. 17, 2021
11 a.m.
Discuss: Fannie Lou Hamer: Voting Rights Activist
Voting rights activist and civil rights leader Fannie Lou Hamer, born in 1917 in Montgomery County, Mississippi, was the granddaughter of a slave and the youngest of 20 children. Raised by hardworking parents who were sharecroppers, she was no stranger to poverty or hardship. An inspirational speaker and writer, she used her powerful voice to raise the cause of equality and freedom for all blacks in America and became a defining force in the fight against social injustice during the early years of the civil rights movement.
In this rare documentary, her struggles and triumphs are expressed through Hamer's own words as well as those of friends and colleagues. While attending the 1964 Democratic National Convention, Fannie Lou Hamer posed the defining question: "Is this America? The land of the free and the home of the brave? Where we have to sleep with our telephone off the hook, because our lives be threatened daily because we want to live in peace as human beings in America?" She will be remembered for winning the right to vote for Black Americans and exposing America's poverty by giving a voice to those in need. This program is an inspiration to anyone who has ever faced oppression and acts as a powerful reminder of what one individual is capable of achieving in the face of adversity.
HCC history professor Maura Henry, Ph.D., will lead a discussion about the documentary.
Feb. 17, 2021
6 p.m.
Black History Month Bingo
Winners get their choice of a shirt or sweatshirt from the BHM fundraiser. Everyone is invited, including staff & faculty.
Feb. 19, 2021
2 p.m.
Trauma-Aware Writing
Join us for a conversation about trauma aware/informed writing with poet and professor, Enzo Silon Surin. We'll discuss his first published collection of poems, When My Body Was a Clinched Fist, and the various experiences that bring his book to life.
Feb. 19, 2021
7 p.m.
Watch: John Lewis: Good Trouble
An intimate account of legendary U.S. Representative John Lewis's life, legacy and more than 60 years of extraordinary activism. After Lewis petitioned Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to help integrate a segregated school in his hometown of Troy, Alabama, King sent "the boy from Troy" a round trip bus ticket to meet with him. From that meeting onward, Lewis became one of King's closest allies. He organized Freedom Rides that left him bloodied or jailed, and stood at the front lines in the historic marches on Washington and Selma. He never lost the spirit of the "boy from Troy" and called on his fellow Americans to get into "good trouble" until his passing on July 17, 2020.
Feb. 23, 2021
1 p.m.
Community Read Discussion Led by Gaylord Saulsberry
All members of the HCC community are invited to read the book One Person, No Vote by Carol Anderson as part of a campus community read. Copies of the book are available for free as an ebook through the HCC Library. HCC history professor Gaylord Saulsberry, Ed.D., will be leading a community discussion on the history of voting rights and Carol Anderson's book.
Feb. 24, 2021
7 p.m.
Watch: Rigged: The Voter Suppression Playbook
Narrated by Jeffrey Wright, Rigged chronicles how our right to vote is being undercut by a decade of dirty tricks - including the partisan use of gerrymandering and voter purges, and the gutting of the Voting Rights Act by the Supreme Court. The film captures real-time voter purges in North Carolina and voter intimidation in Texas.
Feb. 25, 2021
6 p.m.
Paint Night
Join us for a live Paint Night on Thursday, Feb. 25 at 6 p.m. Can't make it to the event or would like to paint on your own? No problem at all! The paint kits are paint by numbers and you can be creative whenever you decide. Pick between three painting options.
Register by Feb. 12
Feb. 26, 2021
2:30 p.m.
Watch: John Lewis: Good Trouble
An intimate account of legendary U.S. Representative John Lewis's life, legacy and more than 60 years of extraordinary activism. After Lewis petitioned Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to help integrate a segregated school in his hometown of Troy, Alabama, King sent "the boy from Troy" a round trip bus ticket to meet with him. From that meeting onward, Lewis became one of King's closest allies. He organized Freedom Rides that left him bloodied or jailed, and stood at the front lines in the historic marches on Washington and Selma. He never lost the spirit of the "boy from Troy" and called on his fellow Americans to get into "good trouble" until his passing on July 17, 2020.
