Black History Month Celebrates Culture, Promotes Diversity Education

Sixteen public events have been scheduled for Illinois State University’s observance of Black History Month, “Celebrating Culture and Promoting Diversity Education.”

The keynote speaker, University of Utah’s William Smith, will speak on “Racial Battle Fatigue” at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 18, in the Old Main Room of Bone Student Center.  Admission is free and open to the public.

Smith is an associate professor in the Department of Education, Culture & Society and the Ethnic Studies Program at Utah and serves as the associate dean for Diversity, Access, & Equity for the College of Education.  Smith is also the editor of 2002 book, “The Racial Crisis in American Higher Education: Continuing Challenges for the twenty-first Century.”  He writes extensively about racial battle fatigue, an interdisciplinary theoretical framework that provides a clearer method for understanding the race-related experiences of people of color.

Smith will participate in a faculty round table discussion at noon Tuesday, Feb. 19, in Student Services Building Room 375; will be a diversity dialogue guest speaker at 7:30 p.m. the same day in the same room; and will participate in a Student Affairs professional development event at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 20, in the Old Main Room.

Another highlight of the month will be when       Distinguished Professor Emeritus of History John Freed speaks on “The Unseen African American Presence at the Founding of ISU” at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 12, in room 151 of the Center for the Visual Arts.  Admission is free.  Freed is the author of a new historical book about the University, “Educating Illinois: Illinois State University, 1857-2007,” in conjunction with the celebration of the University’s sesquicentennial.

One of his most surprising discoveries was the revelation that the university’s founders, a month before the Supreme Court’s infamous Dred Scott decision, sought to admit African Americans but were forced to abandon that plan to assure the passage of the act establishing the University.  Admitting “colored” students, first to the model school and then to the University, became major issues after the Civil War. 

The University opened its doors to African Americans, and in 1876 the first African American graduated from the University.  But as Reconstruction ended, the University suppressed any trace of her existence and of the founders’ concern for the education of African-Americans.  It is only now that a lost chapter in the University’s history is being slowly uncovered.

Other events during Black History Month include the presentation of a play, “What You Don’t Know Can Kill You,” at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 6, in Braden Auditorium.  The play, which is free and open to the public, looks at HIV/AIDS in the African American community.   Free HIV/AIDS testing will be available and the chance to win a laptop computer.

On Thursday, Feb. 7, the Emmy Award-winning documentary, “Ethnic Notion Documentary and Facilitated Discussion,” will be shown at 7 p.m. in Schroeder Hall 242.  The film traces the deep-rooted black stereotypes which have fueled anti-black prejudice. Through these images, viewers can begin to understand the evolution of racial consciousness in America. A facilitated conversation with Illinois Wesleyan Assistant Professor of Psychology Kira Banks will follow the documentary.

The Cultural Career Network Program Annual Networking Event will take place from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 11, in the Founders Suite of Bone Student Center.  The event offers students and alumni an evening of networking with employers to enhance their skills as they prepare for their upcoming internship and/or career fair.

A Safe Zone brown bag discussion is scheduled for noon Tuesday, Feb. 12, in the Bone Student Center Spotlight Room.

The University Housing Services Cultural Dinner from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 19, will feature poet and hip hop artist Saul Williams.  It will take place in the Prairie Room of Bone Student Center.  Ticket information is available by calling 438-3335.

Williams will speak about the evolution of the hip hop culture within the African American culture and its relationship to poetry.  

The 37th annual International Fair will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23, and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24, in Brown Ballroom in Bone Student Center.   For ticket information, call 438-5276.

The 24th annual Black Heritage Masquerade Ball will be at 6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24, in the Prairie Room.  Ticket information will be available at a later date.

At 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 25, in Schroeder Hall Room 242, History Professor Dean Robinson of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Political Science department, will speak on “Race and Public Health.”  Admission is free and open to the public.  Robinson is currently examining the effects of political and public policy trends on racial health disparities in the United States.

A program called “NWC – The Race Show” will be at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 25, in Braden Auditorium.  Admission is free.  The program features three performers who deliver biting humor along with an uncompromising message about race in our society. 

The month will end with the 13th Annual Women’s and Gender Studies Symposium and guest speaker, performance artist Holly Hughes, who will be on campus Wednesday through Friday, Feb. 27 to 29.  She will give the keynote address at the symposium at 1 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27 in the University Galleries.

Hughes is an internationally acclaimed lesbian performance artist whose work complicates traditional boundaries of identity.  She has won two Obie Awards for excellence in off-Broadway theater.  As a living piece of theater history her poetic imagery, political satire and humorous delivery have earned her a place in the pantheon of American theater.