February is African-American History Month, and numerous events will be held on the Colorado State University-Pueblo campus aimed at celebrating important moments in African-American history and promoting racial diversity.
February became linked with African-American History Month in 1976, in part, to honor the influences that Abraham Lincoln and Fredrick Douglass had on racial diversity; both of these men were born in February.
The Brown Eye, Blue Eye Experiment will be held Wednesday, Feb. 11at 6: p.m. in room 109 of the Library and Academic Resource Center. Based off Jane Elliot’s classroom segregation experiment of the same name, the exercise aims to showcase what discrimination feels like and the significance of the “angry eye.”
Following Blue Eye, Brown Eye Wednesday evening will be the Southern Colorado Reading Series featuring Idris Goodwin at 7 p.m. in LARC 109. Goodwin will be reading from his Pushcart Prize nominated book “These are the Breaks.” The novel is a collection of essays expressed through a poetic structure and showcasing issues of race, class and culture.
Goodwin has appeared on HBO and the Discovery Channel, and he teaches hip-hop and performance writing at Colorado College. He will be selling his new album, “Rhyming While Black,” at the event. Free food and drink will be provided.
On Thursday, Feb. 12, there will be an open documentary viewing and discussion of “Light/Dark.” The documentary covers the topics of skin tone and will be held in the Occhiato University Center, room 301 at 5 p.m.
The following week, guest speaker David Volk will be visiting campus Wednesday, Feb. 18 at noon to talk to students about the history of American music and how it helped bridge racial gaps.
According to a press release from the university, “this presentation looks at key moments in American music history and the impact of music on racial understanding.”
A Spirituality Fair will be hosted Friday, Feb. 20 in the OUC Ballroom. The event will take place between 3 and 5 p.m. and allows students to explore and learn about the different religions throughout Southern Colorado.
Following the Spirituality Fair in the OUC Ballroom, will be the Gospel Explosion at 6 p.m. The Gospel Explosion will feature worship music and dance performances from various choirs throughout Southern Colorado, including one from CSU-Pueblo.
On Saturday Feb. 21, students will have the opportunity to give back to their community by signing up to volunteer for the Pueblo Rescue Mission. This is the only event happening off campus and will start at 5 p.m. at 728 West 4th Street.
There will be two different movie viewings Wednesday, Feb. 25. The first show will be presented by the Diversity Resource Center in the Belmont Residence Hall at 6 p.m. The picture has not yet been selected but will be part of CSU Pueblo’s African-American History Month celebration. The second viewing, “Do the Right Thing,” will begin at 6: p.m. in OUC 031 and is sponsored by Jennifer DeLuna, Director of Diversity and Inclusion.
Concluding the month-long celebration will be the Lunch Counter Training February 26, located in the Belmont Hall at 5 p.m. The Lunch Counter Training will be a reenactment of what African-American had to experience during times of segregation in the South. Following the event, there will be an open discussion about racism.
All events are sponsored in part by CSU-Pueblo’s Diversity Resource Center.
