Kick-Off Program
5:30–7:30 p.m.
Thursday, Jan. 31
Heilman Dining Center
Members of the University of Richmond community are invited to the Heilman Dining Center to launch the University of Richmond's Black History Month celebration. A special dinner will be prepared, and student and guest performers will entertain. Standard cost for dinner applies.
For more information, please contact Jean-Pierre Laurenceau-Medina.
Slave Trail
1–4 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 1
Meeting Location TBA
We will walk the route followed by African slaves when they arrived in Virginia and learn from trail markers along the way. Free and open to the public; registration required. An Osher and Black History Month event. Register Here.
For more information, please contact Contact: Jane Dowrick, (804) 287-6608
Plantation Visit
1–5 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 3
A plantation visit organized by the Black Student Alliance.
Emancipation Proclamation talk with president Ayers
4–5:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 5
Brown Alley Room, Weinstein Hall
This talk will discuss the importance of the emancipation proclamation from the expertise of Dr. Ayers. A discussion regarding the historic failings of the government to make good on such promises will be presented. Additionally Dr. Ayers's thesis from his book Promise of the New South will be discussed, particularly as it relates to the failings of the South and its implicit role in the perpetuation of the stagnation of progress for minorities' rights well into the 20th century. A question and answer sessions will follow Dr. Ayers's presentation.
Live in Birdland
by Tommy Igoe
5 p.m.
7:30 p.m. Feb. 6
Camp Concert Hall, Booker Hall fo Music
Directed by drummer Tommy Igoe, the New York City-based Birdland Big Band goes beyond the traditional and sets the standard for the 21st century jazz orchestra. In Live at Birdland, this dynamic ensemble recreates the ambiance and experience of a night at Birdland with fresh treatments of iconic Charlie Parker compositions as well as innovative arrangements from contemporary composers such as Chick Corea, Arturo Sandoval, Sting, Herbie Hancock, Lennon/McCartney, and Leonard Bernstein.
"The Scars of Dessalines: Africa and Haiti" a talk by Professor Deborah Jenson
4:30 p.m.
Thursday, Feb 7
Jepson 118
Professor Deborah Jenson of Duke Universityy, co-director of the Haiti Humanities Lab at Duke will be leading a talk sponsered by the Department of Modern Literatures and cultures. Additionally, she will be in part talking about the lab, the first of its type in the Humanities
Osher Program: Race and the Power of Illusion
7–9 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 7, to Saturday, Feb. 9
After viewing each episode in the PBS series Race – The Power of Illusion, participants will engage in what promises be an enlightening and lively discussion facilitated by the director of the UR Office of Common Ground, Glyn Hughes
“In producing this series, we felt it was important to go back to first principles and ask: What is this thing called ‘race’?—a question so basic it is rarely raised. What we discovered is that most of our common assumptions about race—for instance, that the world’s people can be divided biologically along racial lines—are wrong. Yet the consequences of racism are very real.”
Contact: Jane Dowrick, (804) 287-6608
Connecting Women of Color Conference
1:30–5 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 15
Jepson Alumni Center
The Connecting Women of Color Conference meets the goals of the University of Richmond as well as Westhampton College by seeking to develop women holistically and helping them to become informed and engaged citizens capable and prepared to make a positive impact on society.
The Connecting Women of Color Conference fosters an open dialogue in which undergraduate women will think deeply and critically about current issues. University of Richmond students will be given the unique opportunity to network with faculty, staff, and students from across the region, fostering, in the meantime, their own affinity for the University.
The conference focuses on educating women about several issues, including but not limited to: relationship development, spiritual development, career formation, and health awareness.
Please contact Charm Bullard for more information.
Before the Memories Fade: Voices from the Civil Rights MovementAfter the viewing of a Before the Memories Fade: Voices from the Civil Rights Movement documentary clip, join the UR community over food and refreshments in a viewing and discussion of the documentary that recalls the outrage, the passion and the drive behind the movement that was "working for all people."
Please contact Cheyenne Varner for more information.
Open Mic and Student Showcase
7 p.m.
Friday, March 1
International Commons
“Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art.”
--Charlie “Bird” Parker
Music, dance and the arts have always been an integral and significant part of Black culture and Black history. To close this month’s celebrations, we will provide a platform for members of the University's community and the greater Richmond community to tell their story in different art forms. We will have musical and dance performances, in addition poetry readings. Everyone is welcome to perform and share his or her artistic interpretation of life.
For more information, please contact Janelle Grant
A special thanks to all Black History Month planning committee members and co-sponsors.
These include the Westhampton College, Richmond College, Black Student Alliance (BSA), Boatwright Library, Common Ground, Black Alliance for Sexual Diversity, Oliver Hill Scholars Program, Bonner Center for Civic Engagement, Heilman Dining Hall, and the Office of Student Activities.