This year’s Black History Month Festival, with a tone that was both serious and entertaining, had a message for the UMass Boston community and Boston area at large. The event urged its audience to think seriously about what black history means for all Americans, not just for those of African descent.
“Anyone who doesn’t take an African American history course is doing themselves a disservice…because our history is your history too and (this) system of oppression also affects poor whites, other people of color, and women,” guest speaker and lecturer for the Africana Studies Department Tony Van Der Meer said. The statement seemed appropriate since there was a lack of a noticeable presence from the UMass Boston Caucasian community-both student and faculty.
Van Der Meer threw out names of influential and important African Americans to those in the audience. Despite their struggles to end racism most of those in attendance had no idea who they were. Van Der Meer responded by saying that these were “not just important blacks, but important human beings,” and as students walked in and out of the four-hour event, Van Der Meer reiterated the lesson of the day: the importance of Americans acknowledging their shared histories.
Robert Johnson, Jr., J.D., another guest speaker and chair of the Africana Studies Department, and Van Der Meer commended the Black Student Union (BSU) for organizing the event, which, according to Michelle Laquerre and Sheena Brissot, was in the planning for over two months and included a collaboration with other UMass Boston clubs and external institutions, including Bridgewater State College.
Van Der Meer asked the audience “where is your political organization to begin to push for change,” which was directed to young African American students in general to remind them of “how [they] got to this level” and the long list of blacks in history who challenged the system to demand human rights. Johnson followed up with an example of the Black Panthers and how, in the 1960s, their resistance made law enforcement think twice about being abusive to the black community.
The Black History Month Festival’s guest speakers raised other broad issues, including black males and incarceration, related issues around CORI and employment, and Blacks and socioeconomic and political power. BSU also allowed time for a question and answer session between the speakers and the audience.
The Festival’s entertainment was so captivating that many passing by stopped to watch; others were touched enough to move their bodies to the rhythms; those sitting down were happy to stand and applaud when performances concluded. The event’s entertainment included stepping, African dance, poetry, singing (African American Anthem) and human beat boxing, presenting a tactful mix of amusement and education. For example, the dancers announced that stepping originated in Africa and spoke of its transition into African American slave culture.
The Black History Month Festival also showed the diversity among African Americans, by bringing black cultures of the Caribbean, Africa and North America to light. For the celebration of Black History Month, BSU offered the attendees a dinner buffet and time to socialize after the event.
The Black History Month Festival was held on Feb. 26 at the Campus Center’s first floor terrace between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. The event was hailed as a great success. Many in attendance hoped that next year the event can be held in a space with better acoustics. The planners also expressed their interest in having a more diverse crowd next year.