The Office of Student Inclusion and Diversity and the Black History Month Committee at UNC Pembroke recently announced events for Black History Month. 

Black History Month, celebrated annually in February, recognizes the history, culture, achievements and contributions of African Americans and their role in U.S. history. The celebration was designed to be held in February to coincide with the birthdays of President Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass and was known as Negro History Week. Due to the Civil Rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s and increased awareness of the importance of African American history, the celebration expanded to a full month in the United States by the 1970s. Every U.S. president since 1976 has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Today, other countries, including Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating Black history.

Events to be held during Black History Month at UNCP include:

• February 8-12: MLK Week. For a list of MLK Week activities, visit uncp.edu/mlk.
• February 9: The Being Black Series kicks off at 7 p.m. and can be attended virtually. Join us for a roundtable discussion on what it means to “Be Black” at UNC Pembroke. Students will have the opportunity to share their experiences and voice in an open forum.
• February 16: Join Sonya AmenRa, a representative from Black Lives Matter-Wilmington, for Black Lives Matter 101 at 6 p.m. to learn more about the Black Lives Matter movement. Attend the event virtually.
• February 17: The Black Student Experience, a panel of current students, begins at 6 p.m. and can be attended virtually. The panel will discuss the experiences of Black students at UNCP.
• February 22: Student Health Services is sponsoring a blood drive from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. in the Chavis University Center lounge. Sign up at www.redcrossblood.org/give.
• February 23: Black History Trivia begins at 6 p.m. and can be attended virtually.
• February 25: A sampling of soul food delicacies will be served in the dining hall in the Chavis University Center. A video detailing the history of soul food is available.
• February 26: (Rescheduled to March 18)  Participate in the “Smart, Funny, and Black” game show hosted by Amanda Seals of HBO’s Insecure. The show begins at 7 p.m. Participate virtually through BraveConnect.
• March 4, 2021: Watch the virtual play Plantanos and Collard Greens at 7 p.m. March 4: The event consists of a fun interactive lecture from the director about Platanos Y Collard Greens titled "Black and Latino Relations in a Time of Change" using music and video/documentary footage and will include performances from two of the Platanos cast members of spoken word pieces from the play. The subject matter will be both historical and cultural and address interpersonal romantic relationships and the state of race relations in the present era. Participate virtually through BraveConnect.
• Video: Watch a recorded video of a musical performance which details the history of Black music in the United States.
• Video: Watch a recorded virtual performance of UNC Pembroke’s Divine Dancers and Anointed Worshippers Choir.
• Virtual Read-in: Crossing Bok Chitto: A Choctaw Tale of Friendship and Freedom by Choctaw storyteller Tim Tingle (2006) tells the story of Martha Tom, a Choctaw girl, who befriends Little Mo, a slave boy who lives across the Bok Chitto River. Set in the 1800s, Little Mo’s family faces separation but receives help from Martha Tom and Choctaw women who help them escape to freedom. View the virtual read aloud at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyyDCVIwrF4.

Links for the Black History Month virtual events listed above can be found at uncp.edu/osid and BraveConnect.

Director of Student Inclusion and Diversity Dr. Lawrence Locklear shared, “UNC Pembroke is proud of its institutional diversity. Our African American students, faculty and staff are a cornerstone of BraveNation diversity, and Black Heritage Month is an opportunity to celebrate and showcase them and the accomplishments and contributions of the African American community.”

Black History Month activities are sponsored by the Office of Student Inclusion and Diversity, the Black History Month Committee, the Black Student Union, Campus Engagement and Leadership, National Panhellenic Council and Pembroke Activities Council.

For more information about Black History Month and other diversity awareness programming at UNC Pembroke, please visit BraveConnect or contact the Office of Student Inclusion and Diversity at 910.521.6508 or osid@uncp.edu.