SCSU to mark Black History Month
By Jake Zisla/Contributing Writer
February is Black History Month and SCSU is hosting a series of events to recognize the contributions of African Americans to American society and culture.
Organizers are inviting the public to join SCSU faculty, staff, and students at the events, which will be free of charge.
Multicultural Student Services is co-sponsoring the events with the Council of African American Students, the SCSU Music Department, the SCSU University Programming Board, and various other groups.
“We hope to have a diverse schedule of events to cover a diversity of interests,” said Julie Cartwright, office manager for the Multicultural Student Services. “There should be something for everybody.”
The events will kick off on Sunday, with the University Lutheran Church of the Epiphany playing host to Gospel Music Night with Shana Moses. Moses, an SCSU alum, is currently the choir director at Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church in Minneapolis.
Moses is welcoming those who want to play or sing along to show up at 6 p.m. for practice. The show will start at 7 p.m. for everyone else.
On Feb. 12, Mahmoud El-Kati, professor of African American history at Macalaster College in St. Paul, will present his survey, African American Culture in the 21st Century, at 12:30 p.m. in Atwood Theater. On the same day, the National Black Touring Circuit will put on Laurence Holder’s play, “Zora Neale Hurston,” at 7:30 p.m. in Ritsche Auditorium. The play traces Hurston’s life and role as an influential writer in the Harlem Renaissance.
The Hurston play is co-sponsored by the University Programming Board and Multicultural Student Services. Tomoo Inoue, Performing Arts Coordinator for the UPB, expressed his excitement about bringing the New York-based National Black Touring Circuit to SCSU.
“The National Black Touring Circuit is a very prestigious group, and one of the hardest to get to come here,” Inoue said. “We have been working for five months to get them here and we are all very pumped that it is actually going to happen. We hope to have Ritsche packed. The play will be free for SCSU students and $5 for the public.”
Rounding out the live events will be Joe Carter, who will take the stage on Feb. 13 at the Ruth Grant Recital Hall in the Performing Arts Center. Carter will present “A Song in the Night,” which traces his family’s roots and explores the use of song and the spoken word on plantations in the 1800s.
“We have politics, history, music, and entertainment. Each event is very different and important for different reasons,” Cartwright said.
Inoue shares Cartwright’s enthusiasm about the events, seeing them as a chance to offer necessary education to SCSU students.
“These events are intended to educate students about black culture and history,” he said. “The education on campus is not strong enough, and doesn’t cover these topics enough. That’s why we are bringing in these presentations.”
Cartwright said that planning for the events began in November and even earlier for some of the events. She also said that the hope is to celebrate the contributions of black and appreciate the role they have played in shaping American culture.
In addition to the live events, Multicultural Student Services will present a series of videos in Atwood Little Theater. “Freedom on My Mind,” based on 1960s voting rights, will be shown Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.
The autobiography, “A Son of Africa: The Slave Narrative of Olaudah Equiano,” will be shown Wednesday at 10 a.m. “Struggles in Steel: The Fight for Equal Opportunity,” a documentary on the struggles of black steel workers, will be shown Feb. 19 at 11 a.m., while the Emmy-winning account of the Civil Rights movement, “We Shall Overcome,” follows that Feb. 21 at 2 p.m.
The month’s events will end with the Academy Award nominated documentary, “A Long Night’s Journey Into Day,” an account of racism in South Africa. The film will be shown Feb. 26, at 7 p.m.
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