Black History Month

Just days before the start of Black History Month, employees from the Pentagon’s intelligence agency received a memo notifying them that all activities related to the annual commemoration were now banned. According to a memo obtained by NBC News, the Defense Intelligence Agency ordered a pause of all activities and events related to 11 “special observances” in compliance with President Donald Trump’s ban on DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) programs in the federal workplace. In addition to Black History Month, the agency also ordered the suspension of events marking Asian...

Feb. 1 is the beginning of Black History Month, which for decades has recognized the contributions of Black people to American civic life and culture with festive luncheons, serious lectures, profitable merchandise lines and staid White House receptions. But a month that was officially recognized nearly five decades ago by a Republican president, Gerald R. Ford, is dawning this year with new significance amid President Trump’s furious assault on diversity programs inside and outside the federal government. Suddenly the study of Black history — or at least the dark corners...

Black colleges had sprung up all across the South, ushering in the New Negro, a generation of Black thinkers, artists and leaders who were changing how they were being viewed in the country. A country that still had former slaves as a living reminder of an institution that was banned just 60 year prior. In February 1926 Woodson, who had founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History in 1915, announced the creation of “Negro History Week,” which would be celebrated the second week of the month...

As we enter this Black History Month, we confront one of the greatest contrasts of our time. We celebrate Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his timeless “I Have a Dream” speech, a call for racial equity and unity. We also witness President Donald Trump take action to dismantle decades of progress by targeting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives in the federal government. President Biden had embraced the belief that a more diverse and inclusive workforce would better serve the American people. Yet, with the stroke of a...

Anyone who looks at all the holidays lined up for the month of February can tell it's a time to celebrate Black history, love, football and, um, groundhogs? Here are February's federal holidays and important dates lined up for the second month of the year. While there aren't too many federal holidays in February, there are a lot of other significant holidays this month. While the bank may not close for the sake of a psychic rodent or a day all about love, these holidays are still fun to acknowledge...

As a child, Amir George noticed the pictures of three notable figures on his grandmother’s wall: Martin Luther King, Jr., Jesus Christ and Harold Washington. The inclusion of Chicago’s first Black mayor is not surprising. He was an influential person for many, especially Black residents like George and his grandmother, Mary Ann. So it was a no-brainer for George to choose Washington as the subject of his 2019 short film, “Man of the People.” Featuring archival footage without dialogue or narration, George’s experimental political thriller shows Washington campaigning and making...

A gospel tradition featuring Southern California choirs that goes back more than a decade at Disneyland returns in February as the Anaheim theme park celebrates Black History Month with plenty of music paired with a menu of soul food. The Celebrate Soulfully event honoring Black culture will run throughout February at Disneyland, Downtown Disney and the Disney hotels. The Celebrate Gospel music showcase featuring award-winning recording artists and Southern California community choirs returns to the Fantasyland Theatre at Disneyland on Feb. 8 and 15. ALSO SEE: After 32 years, this...

The soul-shattering abuses suffered by enslaved Africans, who were forcibly stripped of their languages, religions and other key aspects of their culture, were fortunately no match for their superpower — African aesthetics, the enduring, innate African way of life. Despite all the odds, this cultural superpower was successfully used to introduce a bountiful new world of music to the Americas by rethinking how to play traditional Western musical instruments and reworking Western music with concepts from their African homelands.

A dynamic duo of theatrical talent — Tony Award winners Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and Phylicia Rashad — is bringing the play “Purpose” to Broadway’s Helen Hayes Theater beginning Feb. 25.

Frost Fest — Sample beers from 55 breweries starting at 2pm Saturday at the Washington County Fairgrounds in Fayetteville. Get tickets for $80.

Soup Sunday — This fundraiser benefiting Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families allows you to try all kinds of soups from local restaurants starting at 4:30pm Sunday at the Rogers Convention Center. Get tickets for $50.

Black History storytime — Kick off Black History Month by taking the kids to a storytime at the Bentonville Public Library at 11am Saturday.