SIUC to celebrate Black History Month

January 28, 2005

SIUC to celebrate Black History Month

by Bonnie Marx

CARBONDALE, Ill. — Southern Illinois University Carbondale will celebrate Black History Month throughout February with the theme of "Generation black: Constructing a future on the foundations of the past."

The annual observance brings speakers, discussions, performances, music and art to SIUC, but community members are welcome at the events of Black History Month 2005.

The schedule:

Monday, Jan. 31

• Film "The Harder They Come" and discussion by Ekwueme Michael Thelwell, professor of literature and writing in the Afro-American studies department at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and author of the novel of the same name,

7:30 p.m., Student Center Auditorium.

Tuesday, Feb. 1

• "Black History Museum," 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Student Center Ballroom A.

• Book signing by Ekwueme Michael Thelwell, author of "Ready for the Revolution" and "The Harder They Come," noon, Student Center, University Bookstore.

• Keynote address: "Stokely Carmichael — A Legacy: Infinitely Political, Infinitely Human" by Ekwueme Michael Thelwell, 7 p.m., Student Center Auditorium.

Wednesday, Feb. 2

• Black History Knowledge Bowl competition, 5 p.m., Student Center Ballrooms A and B.

Thursday, Feb. 3

• Brown Bag Lecture Series with Anna Jackson, lecturer in English at SIUC, noon, Student Center, Kaskaskia/Missouri Room.

• Registered Student Organization Fair, 5 p.m. Student Center International Lounge.

• Speaker: Bobby Seale, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, 8 p.m., Carbondale Civic Center, $2-$3 admission.

Friday, Feb. 4

• Panel discussion by African and African American students on the realities and responsibilities of being black in the 21st century, 6 p.m., Student Center Video Lounge (fourth floor).

Saturday, Feb. 5

• Red Extravaganza: Red Expose Art Show featuring two local artists, 5-6:30 p.m., Student Center Corker Lounge, free; Visions in Red fashion show featuring students in registered student organizations and the fashion and design program, 7-8 p.m., Student Center Ballroom D, $10 admission. Proceeds go to the Delta Sigma Theta scholarship fund.

• Soul Food Dinner, all you can eat buffet, 5-7 p.m., Hayes Center, 441 E. Willow, $20 admission.

Monday, Feb. 7

• Brown Bag Lecture Series with Steven Haynes, city councilman, former president of the Carbondale NAACP and Kroger manager, noon, Student Center Ohio Room.

• Film: "Roots," episode one, 5:15-6:45 p.m., Law School Auditorium. The Black Law Student Association will show the entire, uncut and unedited version of the "Roots" film by Alex Haley. Episode one: Kunta Kinte is kidnapped from Africa.

• Speaker: Jerry Blakemore, general counsel for the SIU system, "Seeing beyond what is: It was just my imagination," 7 p.m., Student Center Kaskaskia/Missouri Room

Tuesday, Feb 8

• Black Affairs Council Brown Bag Lunch, noon, Student Center Saline Room.

• Presentation: "Black History Month and its Impact on Higher Education" with Pamela A. Smoot, assistant professor of black American studies, and Norma J. Ewing, associate dean of the College of Education and Human Resources, and student scholars, 7 p.m. reception, 7:30 p.m. presentation, The Faculty Club, 1000 S. Elizabeth.

Wednesday, Feb. 9

• "A Tribute to Shirley Chisholm," the first African American woman elected to the U.S. Congress, by Pamela A. Smoot, assistant professor of Black American Studies, noon, Student Center Kaskaskia/Missouri Room.

• "Roots," episode 2, 6:30-8:00 p.m., Law School Auditorium. Episode two: Kunta Kinte is sold at a slave auction.

Thursday, Feb. 10

• Panel discussion: "Sister let's talk, living on the down low," on the subject of males who declare themselves heterosexual but live a hidden life of same-sex sexual encounters, 7-10 p.m., Student Center Video Lounge (fourth floor).

Friday, Feb. 11

• Speaker: Robert Ferris Thompson, art historian at Yale University and one of the foremost authorities on African art, 7 p.m., Parkinson Hall, Browne Auditorium.

• Performance: Azaguno, a multi-ethnic ensemble that presents a unique theatrical performance that represents African experiences, 7:30 p.m., Shryock Auditorium. Tickets are free to SIUC students with ID, $15 for the general public and $9 for seniors and children

Monday, Feb. 14

• Speaker: Leonard Gadzekpo, assistant professor of black American studies, "Ties that Still Bind: Connecting All of African Descent in the Twenty-First Century," noon, Student Center Ohio Room.

• "Roots," episode three, 5:15-6:45 p.m., Law School Auditorium. Episode three: Kunta Kinte attempts to escape.

• Speaker: Kevin Cokley, associate professor of educational, school and counseling psychology at the University of Missouri at Columbia, "Airing Our Dirty Laundry: Bill Cosby and Black Protest," 7 p.m., Student Center Mississippi Room.

Wednesday, Feb. 16

• Speaker: Kevin Foster, educational anthropologist and assistant professor of black American studies, "Sports and the black community — a cultural historical perspective," noon, Student Center Kaskaskia/Missouri Room.

• "Roots," episode four, 6:30-8:00 p.m., Law School Auditorium. Episode four: Kunta Kinte's daughter Kizzy is sold.

Friday, Feb. 18

• Brown Bag Lecture Series: "The Black Master's Degree" by members of the Black Graduate Student Association, noon, Student Center Sangamon Room.

Monday, Feb. 21

• Brown Bag Lecture Series: "A New Anthology of Art Songs by African American Composers" (recital, discussion, book signing) by Margaret Simmons, professor of music, and Jeanine Wagner, professor/assistant director, School of Music, noon, Student Center Mississippi Room.

• "Roots," episode five, 5:15-6:45 p.m. Law School Auditorium. Episode five: Civil war and the end of slavery.

• Lecture: "Generation Next? Mixed Race Students, Identity, and Community on Campus," by Kristen Renn, assistant professor of educational administration at Michigan State University, 7 p.m. Student Center Auditorium.

Wednesday, Feb. 23

• "Roots," episode six, 6:30-8 p.m., Law School Auditorium. Episode six: Former slaves migrate to Tennessee.

Thursday, Feb. 24

• Print signing, limited edition pieces by Najjar Abdul-Musawwir, assistant professor of art and design, noon, Student Center, University Bookstore.

• Celebration of Jazz featuring the Harlan Jefferson Band, 8 p.m., Mugsy McGuire's, 1620 W. Main. $7 admission.

Saturday, Feb. 26

• The Developing Scholars Program, a graduate enhancement workshop for sophomore, junior and senior students. 8 a.m.-3 p.m., Student Center, $5 admission.

Sunday, Feb. 27

• Films and discussion: "Higher Learning" by John Singleton and "School Daze" by Spike Lee, 5-10 p.m., Student Center Ballroom A.

Monday, Feb. 28

• Brown Bag Lecture Series: A 50th Anniversary Observance of the Montgomery Bus Boycott: "A Journey from Brown to Montgomery" by Patricia Mayberry, a member of the SIUC Black Alumni Group, and Lori Crenshaw Bryant, staff attorney at Students' Legal Assistance, noon, Student Center Ohio Room.

Black History Month Exhibitions

• "Black History on Display," Morris Library, Hall of Presidents, Feb. 1-28.

• "Black History," Student Center Display Case, Feb. 1-15.

• "Art by Najjar," Student Center Art Alley, by Najjar Abdul-Musawwir, Jan. 28- Feb. 18.