Black History and Cultural Heritage
Black History and Cultural Heritage
Black History Month began as a week-long celebration in 1926 during the second week of February, created by historian Carter G. Woodson and the newly-named Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH). Since 1976, Black History Month has been celebrated nationally and recognized by every United States president during the month of February. This celebration inspired many communities to host their own celebrations, and encouraged teachers to demand for more Black history-related educational materials for their students. (source: blackhistorymonth.gov)
Past Black History Month Themes, as created by ASAHL:
2026: A Century of Black
History Commemorations
2025:
African Americans and Labor
2024: African
Americans and the Arts
2023:
Black Resistance
2022:
Black Health and Wellness
2021: The
Black Family: Representation, Identity, and Diversity
2020: African
Americans and the Vote
2019: Black
Migrations
2025 Events
What’s a
Black Job? The Evolution of Black Librarians
Tuesday, February 25, 2025 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time
See all Black History Month Symposia
Library and Information Science Best Practices
Best Practices from “A Celebration of Black History Month: Equity in Libraries, 2023 and Beyond”:
Please check out Elaina Norlin’s presentation on “Inclusive Workspaces??” for more information.
- Always do research before an interview so that you can make an informed decision.
- Trust your gut instinct and know that “true inclusiveness” will always impact the work culture.
- Think about these questions throughout the interview process:
- How do they resolve disagreements in conflict?
- Does the workplace instill more of a scarcity or an abundance mindset?
- Do they encourage creative thinking? How comfortable is the workplace with challenging the status quo?
- What kind of career progression is available?
- How do you talk to the person that you are directly reporting to? Are performance evaluations only annual, biannual, etc?
- Is this company retaining employees? How does the company value in the people who work for them?
Best Practices from “Shaping the Future Together: How Libraries Can Support Communities of Color”:
- Serve as a mentor for up-and-coming librarians.
- Create more library decision-making seats at the table for BIPOC folks.
- Amplify the voices and perspectives of communities of color.
- Seek out partnerships with organizations that are already supporting BIPOC folks.
Community Profiles
- Understanding Good Library Management with Tiffany Duck
- Jessica Pryde On Diversifying Your Career and Your Bookshelf
- Alumnus Randall White on Changing the World with Informatics
- iSchool Alumnus Darnelle Melvin talks Metadata, Linked Data, and Digitization
- Family and Travel Open the World of Librarianship to MLIS Graduate
Professional Associations
- National Conference of African American Librarians
- Black History Month
- Programming Librarian: Black History Month Resource Round-Up
Bibliography
- Black History Month: Making a Successful Entry into the Profession
- iSchool Presents EDI Online Symposium February 23
- Grant Project Aims to Introduce Librarianship to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color
- Don’t Miss: The SJSU iSchool’s Diversity Webcast Series
- How to Contextualize Black History (Month): A Q&A With Travis Boyce
- SJSU MOSAIC Cross Cultural Center