UC Celebrates Black History Month 2005

In 1926, historian Carter G. Woodson began promoting "Negro History Week." His group, which he founded to study "Negro Life and History," chose February because two major historical figures in the fight against slavery were born in February: Frederick Douglass, the abolitionist, and Abraham Lincoln, the president who signed the Emancipation Proclamation. (Because he was born a slave, Douglass' birthdate is uncertain. He celebrated his birthday on Feb. 14. Lincoln's was Feb. 12.) In 1976, the celebration was lengthened and its name changed to Black History Month. Keep your eyes open for activities around UC's campuses in celebration of Black History Month.

Langsam Library Displays Observe African American History Month

Display: “Milestones of Freedom”

Location: 4th Floor Lobby Area of Langsam Library

Description: This exhibit uses library resources, images and quotes to highlight important American moments in freedom starting with the country’s founding and continuing through the end of slavery, Women’s Suffrage, the Civil Rights Movement and equity in the workplace. Featured in the exhibit are such great fighters for freedom as Patrick Henry, Abraham Lincoln, Rosa Parks and Shirley Chisholm, the first African-American woman elected to congress and the first woman to run for president.

Display coordinators: Elizabeth Meyer, virtual resource librarian, and Barbara Macke, assistant librarian

Display: “Partners in Freedom”

Location: 5th Floor Lobby Area of Langsam Library

Description: This display celebrates the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and University Libraries’ collaboration with the center as one “Freedom Station” in an international network of affiliates dedicated to “educating the public about the historic struggle to abolish human enslavement and secure freedom for all people.

Information about these and other University Libraries’ exhibits 

College of Engineering Conducts Video Series in Celebration of Black History Month

Videoshowings will take place in 544 Baldwin each Wednesday evening during February beginning Feb. 2. Each presentation will begin at 6 pm.

Feb. 2:  “A Great and Mighty Walk,” an overview of Dr. John Henrik Clarke’s life and contribution to Black History. John Henrik Clarke was known as a pioneer in the field of African and African-American studies. Dr. Clarke was key to the early history of Cornell University’s Africana Studies & Research Center. He was a Distinguished Visiting Professor of African History at the Center in the 1970s. Dr. Clarke authored many articles in leading scholarly journals and also served as the author, contributor or editor of 24 books. In 1968 along with the Black Caucus of the African Studies Association, Dr. Clarke founded the African Heritage Studies Association. In 1969 he was appointed as the founding chairman of the Black and Puerto Rican Studies Department at Hunter College in New York City.

Feb. 9:  “Something the Lord Made,” a docudrama of the life of Vivien Thomas, a carpenter by trade who became a self-educated heart surgeon and teacher at John Hopkins Hospital and University. In 1944, with little money and only a high school diploma, Thomas helped pioneer a ground-breaking heart operation at Johns Hopkins Hospital that saved thousands of children’s lives and ushered in the modern era of cardiac surgery. At Hopkins, Thomas and chief surgeon Dr. Alfred Blalock spent hundreds of hours rehearsing and developing an operation to repair the hearts of “blue babies,” so named because a congenital heart defect called “tetralogy of Fallot” left them blue from lack of oxygen. With Thomas looking over his shoulder, Blalock successfully performed the first procedure on Nov. 29, 1944, on 15-month-old Eileen Saxon. As head of Hopkins’ surgical research laboratory, Thomas helped teach two generations of heart surgeons at a time when he could not become one.

Feb. 16: “The Loss of a Warrior,” a documentary on the life of Malcolm X. Malcolm X was born Malcolm Little on May 19, 1925, in Omaha, Nebraska. His family home was burned and his father murdered, both attributed to accidents by authorities. Malcolm was positive they were acts of racism. He fell in trouble with the law and served seven years in prison for burglary. He was paroled after seven years. During this time he began to study the teachings of Elijah Muhammad, the founder of the Nation of Islam (NOI). He dropped what he called his “slave name,” Little, in favor of the ambiguous “X.” He was a staunch supporter of Elijah Muhammad until learning that Muhammad had fathered several illegitimate children with as many as six women. He separated from the NOI and began to identify more with traditional Islam. After he was assassinated in 1965, three men were convicted on first-degree murder in 1966. All were NOI members.
 
Feb. 23: “Black History Revisited,” interviews with Dr. Yosef ben Jochannan, Dr. Ivan Van Sertima and Dr. John Henrik Clarke that focus on African contributions to Christianity, culture and science. African resistance to slavery is also discussed. Dr. Yosef A. A. Ben-Jochannan, affectionately known as “Dr. Ben,” was born to a Puerto Rican mother and an Ethiopian father in what is known as the “Falasha” Hebrew community in Gondar, Ethiopia. Dr. Ben’s formal education began in Puerto Rico. His early education continued in The Virgin Islands and in Brazil, where he attended elementary and secondary school. Dr. Ben earned a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Puerto Rico, and a Master’s degree in Architectural Engineering from the University of Havana, Cuba. He received doctorial degrees in Cultural Anthropology and Moorish History, from the University of Havana and the University of Barcelona, Spain. Dr. Ben was adjunct professor at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, from 1976 to 1987.

Dr. Ivan Van Sertima is a literary critic, linguist, anthropologist and writer. He has written and published more than 49 books and papers, revealing much of the information unearthed while he was in Egypt. Two of his better-known works include Black Man of the Nile and His Family and Africa: Mother of Major Western Religions. In 1977 he wrote They Came Before Columbus: The African Presence in Ancient America, now in its sixteenth printing, for which he won the Clarence L. Holte Prize for excellence in literature and the humanities relating to the cultural heritage of Africa. He is the editor of the Journal of African Civilizations, and has edited numerous recent books including African Presence in Early America, Great African Thinkers, and Great Black Leaders: Ancient and Modern.

African American Cultural and Research Center (AACRC) Kicks Off Black History Month with KUAMKA WEEK 2005: “Renewing the Spirit of Community: Educate to Elevate”

This is the sixth year for AACRC’s Kuamka (which means “in the beginning” in Swahili). A myriad of activities occur the first week of February, culminating in the Red, Black, Green & Gold Ball on Saturday.

 Wednesday, Feb. 2
Faculty and Staff Appreciation Reception
AACRC, noon–1 p.m.
Invitation Only

Thursday, Feb. 3
Kuamka Talent Show
Great Hall, 6:30 p.m.
Free and open to the public

 Friday, Feb. 4
“Blackout” Exhibition of poetry and talent
Great Hall, 6–9 p.m.
Sponsored by Shades of You & the UC Women’s Center
Free and open to the public

Saturday, Feb. 5
Red, Black, Green & Gold Ball
End of Rites of Passage (Transitions students)
Coronation of Mr. & Ms. Kuamka
Kujifunza Recognition Ceremony, where students who are actively involved in Basic Transitions and earned between a 2.0 and 4.0 last quarter get ribbons that reflect their achievement
Great Hall, 7 p.m.
Free Tickets available at AACRC

Contact AACRC at 556-1177 for events information

Army ROTC Presents Display Honoring the History of African Americans in Military Service

The University of Cincinnati Army ROTC will present a display by the U.S. Army titled “African American Contributions to the Nation’s Defense.” The exhibit will be featured in the lobby of MainStreet’s Tangeman University Center (TUC) on Wednesday, Feb. 9. Highlights of the exhibit include photos of the Buffalo Soldiers, a photo of the first African American cadet to graduate from West Point, heroes in World War Two and the role of African Americans in the Gulf War. U.S. soldiers, some dressed in Desert Camouflage Uniforms (DCUs), will be on hand to address student questions.

The NAACP College Chapter is also holding its membership drive at the Mainstreet Express Mart on Feb. 9 and 11 from 12 to 2 p.m.

Career Development Center Presents Black Inventors' Exhibit

ENTREPRENEUR WORKSHOP SERIES 2005

African American-Owned Businesses:

"Old School to New School," Featuring Local Entrepreneurs and Black Inventors' Exhibit

February 23, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Career Development Center (CDC), University Pavilion 1st. floor  

To celebrate the heritage of African American entrepreneurs, CDC begins its 2005 series with reality storytelling and the exploration of new market-savvy opportunities for future entrepreneurial careers. Price Hill entrepreneur Katrina Mincy will tell her story and give out a taste of her "Aunt Flora's" famous peach cobbler.

The three-part series is presented by the Career Development Center in collaboration with the College of Business Economics Center for Education and Research and includes career-focused workshops February through April. Faculty are encouraged to bring their classes. Students learn while assessing their own potential!

All are free and open to students, faculty, staff and the public.

For more information on these and other activities, visit the UC calendar.