NSU kicks off Black History Month with the Opening Reception of the 16th Annual African Presence Art Exhibition on Feb. 8, beginning at 6:30 pm in the Don Taft University Center. « Read more »
African Presence 2019 Photos
Let's Speak Truth 2019 Photos
NSU’s annual African Presence Art Exhibition has grown from a modest showing of works by local artists to a highly anticipated event. View previous exhibitions…
In 1915, Carter G. Woodson and Jesse E. Moorland co-founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH) to educate and bring attention to the contributions of Black people in American and world history.
Several years later, in 1926, Woodson urged the Black fraternity, Omega Psi Phi, Inc. to create Negro History and Literature Week.
They later changed the Name to Negro History Week, designating February as the month to celebrate Black achievement, giving homage to Abraham Lincoln (who issued the Emancipation Proclamation) and Frederick Douglass (a noted abolitionist and proponent of education as empowerment). Both men were born in February.
Years later, (in 1970) and in response to the Black Power Movement, the ASNLH changed the name from Negro History Week to Black History Week; finally extending the commemoration to the entire month of February in 1976.
By Debra Nixon, Ph.D. Diversity & Inclusion Coach
Learn more about Black History Month