Over the years, various departments and co-ops in the City of Greenbelt have arranged Black History Month events. This year, elected city representatives and the Recreation Department are joining forces with community residents and Greenbelt Racial Equity Alliance (GREA) to present a program celebrating Black History Month. The Sunday, February 17 program will feature spoken word artists, the award winning Step Team from Eleanor Roosevelt High School, an art exhibition from Greenbelt Middle School students and special guest speaker, Dr. Alvin Thornton, chair of the Board of Education of Prince George’s County. The program begins at 2 p.m. in the Community Center Gym.
Negro History Week was founded by Carter G. Woodson in 1926 to celebrate the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, both born in February. Woodson also wanted to dispel the notion that Americans of African descent had no history or culture and made no contributions economically, socially and culturally to the development and advancement of the United States. Woodson once wrote that, “Those who have no record of what their forebears have accomplished lose the inspiration which comes from the teaching of biography and history.” As founder of the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, Woodson’s life work was devoted to demonstrating evidence that Americans of African descent were essential to the financial, social and cultural fabric of the U.S. He also wanted black Americans to be proud of their African heritage and realize the positive impact they have had on American society. A few of those contributors include Garrett Morgan, who created the automated traffic light; Frederick McKinley Jones, who invented the portable air conditioner and later the refrigerated truck; and Dr. Gladys West, inventor of the GPS who was recently honored by the U.S. Air Force at the Pentagon. Thanks to the book and movie Hidden Figures, we are all aware of Katherine Johnson and the many black women employed by NASA who helped launch America’s space program. This year Greenbelt celebrates Black History Month on February 17 at 2 p.m. at the Community Center gym by honoring Woodson for his forward thinking and dedication to ensure that African American contributions and history continue to be acknowledged, studied and celebrated.
The program is free and open to the public.
