January 27, 2011
'The Year of Jubilee' is Black History Month theme
Isabel Wilkerson
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CARBONDALE, Ill. -- There is much to celebrate during February’s observance of Black History Month 2011 at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. In fact, the theme this year declares it “The Year of Jubilee.”
The month-long celebration of black contributions to culture and history commemorates the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War. The celebration also notes the establishment of an Africana Studies major in the College of Liberal Arts. The Rev. Joseph A. Brown, director of the Africana Studies program, said other events celebrating the new major are in the works for the remainder of the academic year and into the summer.
Here are the events scheduled for Black History Month. In some cases, more information will be available closer to the time of the event.
Feb. 1
• Oops! Entertainment Productions presents “I’m Sick of This…” 7-9 p.m., Student Center, Cambria Room
Oops! Entertainment Group, or Our Organization Portrays Society, a Registered Student Organization at SIUC, presents social messages disguised as entertainment, including improvisation, poetry, comedy, plays and more.
Feb. 4-March 11
• African American Artists in the University Museums Collection, University Museum
An exhibit opening reception honors this and other exhibits in the University Museum’s North Hall. The reception is from 4 to 7 p.m. on Feb. 4 and may feature a panel discussion focused on this exhibit.
Feb. 5
• The Blaxploitation Movement film showing, 7:30-10:30 p.m., Varsity Center for the Arts, 418 S. Illinois Ave., Carbondale
Novotny Lawrence, assistant professor in the Department of Radio and Television at SIUC, and the author of “Blaxploitation Films of the 1970s: Blackness and Genre,” presents an examination of how movies and television shows represent blacks.
Feb. 9
• A Block of Writers: Conversation on Creative Writing, 5-7 p.m., Student Center Auditorium
Writers Allison Joseph and Jacinda T. Gides from the SIUC Department of English, and Frank Chipasula and the Rev. Joseph A. Brown, from the Department of Africana Studies, discuss the creative process and creative writing.
Feb. 13
• What is the SOUL in soul food? 2-4 p.m., African American Museum, University Mall, Carbondale
We’ve had chicken soup for every kind of soul, but what is soul food really? Psyche Williams-Forson, author of “Building Houses Out of Chicken Legs: Black Women, Food and Power,” joins us from the University of Maryland-College Park to talk soul food. What is soul food and where did it originate? Do black Americans really eat chit’lins and fried chicken, and does it matter if that assumption exists? What is the role of soul food in keeping alive tradition? Williams-Forson considers these and other questions in this talk about heritage and history and food.
• Film Festival: Africa and the Diaspora, 7-7:30 p.m., site to be determined
Feb. 14
• Film Festival: Africa and the Diaspora, 7-7:30 p.m., site to be determined
Feb. 15
• Brown Bag with Leah Agne -- The History of Black Students at SIUC, noon-1 p.m., Morris Library, Hall of Presidents
Leah Agne, University archivist for the Morris Library Special Collections, created an exhibit for the Hall of Presidents. She discusses the materials, the history, and the significance of SIUC’s mission of accessibility.
• Black Feminist Thought: For Colored Girls, by Rachel Griffin, 7-7:30 p.m., Grinnell Hall
Rachel Griffin, assistant professor of speech communication at SIUC, specializes in critical race theory, gender violence, and intercultural communication. Her awards include a Top Paper Award in the Intercultural Communication division of the Eastern Communication Association, a Top Paper Award in the African American Communication and Culture division in the National Communication Association, and an Outstanding Dissertation Award in the African American Communication and Culture Division and Black Caucus from the National Communication Association.
• Film Festival: Africa and the Diaspora, 7-7:30 p.m., site to be determined
Feb. 16
• Film Festival: Africa and the Diaspora, 7-7:30 p.m., site to be determined
Feb. 17
• Film Festival: Africa and the Diaspora, 7-7:30 p.m., site to be determined
Feb. 18
• An Evening with Barclays Ayakoroma, executive secretary, National Institute for Cultural Orientation, Nigeria, 4-5:30 p.m., Student Center, Illinois River Room
Barclays Ayakoroma, of the National Institute for Cultural Orientation in Nigeria, accepted the appointment as executive secretary in 2009. He has a strong background in theater as an actor and director, and he is an award-winning playwright. His experience as an arts director includes the position of executive director for the Bayelsa State Council for Arts and Culture, and membership on the governing board of the National Orientation Agency. He is visiting senior lecturer at Nasarawa State in Nigeria.
• Film Festival: Africa and the Diaspora, 7-7:30 p.m., site to be determined
Feb. 19
• Film Festival: Africa and the Diaspora, 7-7:30 p.m., site to be determined
Feb. 21
• Tunnel of Oppression, Black Togetherness Organization, 5:30-8:30 p.m., Grinnell Hall
The Tunnel of Oppression is something of a tradition at SIUC during Black History Month. The tunnel is a series of rooms, each addressing an issue such as racism, ageism, homophobia, or gender bias. The tour is an audience-participation event that encourages participants to experience some level of discrimination in order to gain empathy and a renewed respect for all people.
• Keynote Speaker Isabel Wilkerson, To the Warmth of Other Suns, Lesar Law Building Auditorium, 7-9 p.m.
Isabel Wilkerson is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration.” The Great Migration refers to the time period from World War I to the 1970s, during which approximately 6 million black Americans left the American South to go north and west. Wilkerson’s book traces three individuals as examples of the famous and obscure people who left their homes for the hope of freedom under the “warmth of other suns.”
Wilkerson is the first black woman to win a Pulitzer Prize. She also holds a George S. Polk Award, a Guggenheim Fellowship and a Journalist of the Year Award as presented by the National Association of Black Journalists. Much of her journalistic career has been as national correspondent and Chicago bureau chief for the New York Times. She found inspiration for this book from her own parents’ stories. During her 14 years of research, she interviewed more than 1,200 people.
Feb. 22
• Tunnel of Oppression, Black Togetherness Organization, 5:30-8:30 p.m., Grinnell Hall
Feb. 23
• Special Collections Reception, Roland W. Burris’ donation, 3-4:30 p.m., Morris Library, John C. Guyan Auditorium
This reception is in honor of Roland W. Burris’ donation of his U.S. Senate and state government papers to SIUC’s Morris Library.
• Tunnel of Oppression, Black Togetherness Organization, 5:30-8:30 p.m., Grinnell Hall
Feb. 24
• Tunnel of Oppression, Black Togetherness Organization, 5:30-8:30 p.m., Grinnell Hall
• Football’s Bell Curve: Exploring Black Quarterbacks, 7-8 p.m., Student Health Center
Feb. 25
• Faculty and Student Appreciation Reception, 5-8 p.m., Student Recreation Center, Alumni Lounge
Feb. 28
• Concert of Spirituals, 7-9 p.m., Old Baptist Foundation Recital Hall