Black History Month brings 'visions' to campus

By CHRIS WITKOWSKY
Collegian Staff Writer

As February is ushered in by the freezing winds of winter, Black History Month puts students and faculty on a redefining journey toward "Visions for a New Era."

The latter title, serving as the theme for Black History Month, proclaims exactly what the directors of this year's activities are striving to accomplish.

One -- focus on the new roles to be played by African-Americans in American society. Two -- redefine the old notions of what is meant by "African-American" in history books and show history completely, without exclusion of African-American accomplishments.

"Much of the history of African-American people is omitted from mainstream understanding," said Lawrence Young, director of the Paul Robeson Cultural Center.

"As we go into the new millennium the hope is that history will be recorded without exclusion and can be more clearly understood by future generations."

In history books, many of the accomplishments of African-Americans have been classified simply within the realm of music and dance, while African-Americans in science and technology are largely ignored, Young said.

"Visions for a new era will focus on the fullness of the contributions that African-Americans have made to the historical record," he said.

While names like Michael Jackson, Martin Luther King Jr. and Michael Jordan have achieved household fame, inventors such as Otis Boykin, who invented the guided missile; Garrett Morgan, who created the gas mask and traffic signal; or even Augustus Jackson, who developed ice cream, remain anonymous to many Americans.

"We want the people in the audience to develop a broad appreciation for that which we call black culture," Young said.

In order to expand students' appreciation of black culture, the organizers of Black History Month are providing various speakers, artists and musicians -- all leaders within the African-American community.

The participants' jobs are to show the accomplishments of excluded blacks throughout the past in order to foster confidence for future generations.

By providing a look into the whole scope of history, not just history dictated by rich, white men, new generations might be able to see how much of American life has been influenced by blacks.

"We need to redefine what America is, in terms of the way it circulates in the schools and on television," Vorris Nunley (graduate-English) said. "We need to re-conceive what the country is really about in terms of accurate history.

"What does it mean to be American?" Nunley asked.

One of the speakers who hopes to redefine old concepts about blacks is poet/publisher Haki Madhubuti, Ph.D., who published 19 books and received the American Book Award in 1991.

"Dr. Madhubuti is a poet-publisher-teacher who has been instrumental in the creation of a broadened scope of history in African-American writing," Young said.

Dr. Madhubuti spoke at the Million Man March in 1995 and was the poet in residence at Cornell and Howard Universities.

Another keynote speaker is Sonia Sanchez, who has published 10 books and lectured at over 500 universities.

"Dr. Sanchez, as a black woman teaching women's studies, is a person who's been very active in developing the idea that women's studies must be inclusive of African-American women in the movement for women's equality," Young said.

With many more speakers participating this month, one student, Rachel Hennessey (senior-psychology), plans to get a very different history lesson than the one she received in grade school.

"I'm attending some of these activities because I feel like I need to learn more about other cultures," Hennessey said. "I believe this country has a real problem with racial inequality because, as much as things change, they still remain the same."

Learning is the main objective of the activities, but having a good time is always a priority.

"We want the audience to have fun and to be informed by this experience," Young said. "We want them to use this as a part of their campus learning experience and for their community at large."