This year marks the 100th anniversary of the celebration of Black History Month in America. Started by renowned teacher and sociologist Carter G. Woodson as Negro History Week in 1926, it became a federally recognized month in 1976 to honor African Americans’ contributions to history.
“The Mis-Education of the Negro”
By Carter G. Woodson
In this new release of Carter Woodson’s Penguin Classic, readers get an updated introduction by Woodson scholar Jarvis Givens and editor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. The main takeaway includes Woodson’s convincing argument, which is still relevant today, for the inclusion of African American thinkers, artists, culture and ideals within the American educational system.
"The Disordered Cosmos"
By Chanda Prescod-Weinstein
An excellent book that deftly explains small particle physics while also illuminating a much fuller history of science, conveying how racism and sexism influence the level at which big ideas can be explored and debated.
"The Other Madisons"
By Bettye Kearse
Part history, part memoir, this book tells the story of Dr. Kearse’s ancestry—both European American and African American—and President James Madison’s progeny in a gripping elucidation of national secrets.
"The Fire Next Time"
by James Baldwin
Published during the height of the Civil Rights movement (1963), Baldwin’s "The Fire Next Time" is an amalgamation of two unique essays that explore issues of self-identity, belonging and survival in a system of segregation in America. The reader will intensely feel the personal voice of the author and his analysis of race and the race problem in America, exactly 100 years since the Emancipation Proclamation.
"Black Skin, White Masks"
By Frantz Fanon
As a philosopher and psychiatrist, Fanon, in his book "Black Skin, White Masks" (1952), looks at the traumatic impact of historical colonialism on the psyche of the black mind. He explores how the institution of racism and systemic colonialism created a pernicious psychopathology in the colonized; his work, in many regards, builds on the DuBoisian philosophy of “double consciousness.”
"Birthright Citizens"
By Martha S. Jones
"Birthright Citizens" tells the story of the fight for belonging in antebellum America. Martha Jones shows how birthright citizenship was contested in the American legal system, and also how it was fought for through deep understandings of the same system being used to resist it. To me, the book really exists in two worlds, the historical and the contemporary. It has an important place in the continuing debates surrounding belonging in America, as well as representing a foundational text in the study of Black history.
"The Audacity of Hope"
By Barack Obama
I think it aligns beautifully with the 100-year commemoration of Black History Month—Heritage, Hope, Horizon.
"Unmanned Drone" (Sculpture)
By Kara Walker
I recently visited The Brick in Los Angeles, California, and was able to view Kara Walker’s new installation "Unmanned Drone." The work inventively reimagines the Confederate statue of Stonewall Jackson with a compelling deconstruction and impactful commentary. Highly recommend!
And be sure to check out Kara Walker’s books available at the library.
"Chronicle of Change"
By Raquel Ordaz, University of Utah student
Check out this recently published archival history project conducted by Raquel Ordaz. Showcasing meaningful stories about Black faculty, students and community members and how they advocated for a more welcoming campus.
"Curly Jones: Utah’s First Black Librarian"
By Bri Clegg, University of Utah student
Enjoy this new, wonderful exhibit by Black Faculty & Staff Association intern Bri Clegg about librarian Curly Jones.
