Across campus and across the city, diverse groups are coming together to celebrate Black History Month. This February, Black History Month focuses on “Celebrating the Strength and Power of Black Women and Girls.” A variety of events encourage our community to celebrate black history and culture in Canada, especially the stories and contributions of black women and girls. 

Representatives from the Guelph Black Students Association and Queer and Trans People of Colour student club expressed the importance of celebrating Black History Month at the University as a means of “embracing our histories and culture, increasing representation on campus, and making connections between the global and local narratives of black and African diaspora communities.”

Highlights of Black History Month include: 

• Feb. 1
  • Art Display – 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. – University Centre courtyard
  • Opening Ceremony – Noon – University Centre courtyard  
  • Black Comedy Night at the Making Box – 9 p.m. – Tickets: $10 for students and $20 for community members, available through the Making Box website.
•  Feb. 6
  • R.I.S.E Spoken Word Performance – Noon – University Centre courtyard  
  • Anti-Blackness Teach-In – 1 – 4 p.m. – University Centre, Room 442 
•  Feb. 11-14:
  • Black Programming – CFRU Radio
•  Feb. 12
  • Blackness X Queerness Workshop – 2:30 – 4:30 p.m. – MacKinnon Building, Room 054-055 
•  Feb. 13
  • Zumba! presented by Caribbean Cultural Club – 5 p.m. – Athletics Centre, Room 302
•  Feb. 26
  • Freedom Is a Constant Struggle: A talk with the iconic political activist, author and professor Angela Davis – 7:30 p.m. – W.F. Mitchell Athletic Complex – Tickets are $5 for students and $15 for staff, faculty and community members. Tickets are available via EventBrite. 
• Feb. 28
  • Closing Ceremony featuring Danielle Ponder & The Tomorrow People – noon – University Centre courtyard
  • Wikipedia Edit-A-Thon: Black History – Learn how to edit and write Wikipedia articles to make Wikipedia a more inclusive, diverse space on the web – 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. – McLaughlin Library
• All February
  • Black History Month Book Display – To capture the spirit of this year’s theme, the library has curated a collection of resources by and about black women. Stop by the library to visit the display and choose a book to take home. You can also find the full list of print and online titles on the library website.

All events are free unless otherwise indicated. Please check the online calendar and GryphLife for details about these and other events. 

Black History Month is presented in collaboration with the Office of Intercultural Affairs, the Guelph Black Students’ Association, the Caribbean Cultural Club, the Student Help and Advocacy Centre, Guelph Resource Centre for Gender Empowerment and Diversity, Queer and Trans People of Colour, the Guelph Black Heritage Society, Guelph Poetry Slam, The Making Box, OPIRG and the McLaughlin Library.