Black History Month 2022

Black History Month 2022

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Celebrate Black history, culture, and issues with a variety of educational and entertaining events throughout February! Events will be held in the Library's Cooper Room and streamed on Zoom.  Zoom links can be found in the event on our website calendar.  Resource sheets are linked for each of the events below as well. 

These events are made possible through grant funds provided by Libraries Transforming Communities: Focus on Small and Rural Libraries, an initiative of the American Library Association (ALA) in collaboration with the Association for Rural & Small Libraries (ARSL).

February 3 at 5:30pm - Virtual Movie Night showing 13th: Join us on Zoom to watch and discuss Ava DuVernay's documentary, which explores the history of racial inequality in the United States, focusing on the fact that the nation's prisons are disproportionately filled with African-Americans. Runtime: 1 hour and 40 minutes. 
Resource Sheet
This documentary is freely available on YouTube to watch if you aren't able to make it to the event. View it here.
Check out our documentary discussion here.

February 8 at 6:00pm - Bystander to Upstander Intervention Training: The Bystander to Upstander Intervention training, led by Jen Dreiske from SD Voices for Peace, is a 60-minute introduction to responding in safe and impactful ways to acts of discrimination, hate, and bigotry, whether in the workplace, a public space, or at home.
Resource Sheet
Watch the recording here. 

February 9 at 6:30pm - Connecting Communities Talk with Lawrence Diggs: This program presents ways to lower the resistance to meeting and interacting with people and will introduce ways to bring communities together.
Resource Sheet

February 15 at 6:30pm - "Betty Blair, Homesteader Extraordinaire" Historical Reenactment with Joyce Jefferson: Learn about African American homesteaders from a first-hand account by Mary Elizabeth "Betty" Blair, whose family  homesteaded, scouted land, and settled near Fairbank and Onida, Dakota Territory, 1882.
Resource Sheet
Watch the recording here.

February 22 at 6:00pm - Negro Leagues Baseball Talk with Phil Dixon: Author and African American baseball historian Phil Dixon will discuss the Negro Leagues teams of the area and the greater Midwest.
Resource Sheet
Watch the recording here.

February 24 at 6:00pm - Black History Month Celebration: Join the Library in a celebration of Black culture and history! There will be soul food, activities, presentations, and more. This event is free to the public and all ages are welcome! Co-sponsored by the SDSU Black Student Alliance. 
Resource Sheet
Watch the recording here.

March 1 at 6:00pm - "More Than a Month" Community Conversation: Gather with members of the Brookings community to discuss what we have learned from the topics addressed throughout the month of February and how we can apply that knowledge to be better neighbors and make Brookings a more inclusive place to live. Co-sponsored by the Brookings Human Rights Commission