Black History Month

Children’s E-Books on Black History

Click here for a virtual display of children’s books on black history.

Juneteenth: A Celebration of Freedom

Since President Biden just signed the law making Juneteenth a federal holiday, here is a video from our library from 2019 about the Juneteenth holiday. Talk Description: “Moraine Valley Community College students will learn about the oldest known holiday to commemorate the ending of slavery in the United States. The session will focus on the… Continue reading Juneteenth: A Celebration of Freedom

Revisiting the Past & Looking to the Future: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion 1919-2021-Dr. Tracy Crump (video)

Special guest Dr. Tracy Crump, Associate Professor of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice at St. Xavier University. Dr. Crump’s talk will consider how to build inclusive spaces in our society by exploring the root causes of social unrest in Chicago over the last century. She will start with the Red Summer of 1919 and move… Continue reading Revisiting the Past & Looking to the Future: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion 1919-2021-Dr. Tracy Crump (video)

The “Divine Nine”: the History & Discussion of Black Greek Letter Organizations (video)

The Divine Nine is made up of nine historically Black fraternities and sororities, formally known as the National Pan-Hellenic Council.Greek Organization members Misty Williams and Philip Davis sat down with Moraine Valley students via WebEx and PowerPoint to provide background about their respective organizations and the other Divine Nine organizations. Ms. Williams is Moraine’s director… Continue reading The “Divine Nine”: the History & Discussion of Black Greek Letter Organizations (video)

An Interview with Haki R. Madhubuti: Taught by Women & other Writers (video)

Haki R. Madhubuti is a poet, publisher, and public intellectual. He is the founder of Third World Press which is the largest, independent, African-American owned press in the United States. In this interview, MVCC’s Dewitt Scott interviews Mr. Madhubuti on his new book Taught By Women: Poems as Resistance Language New and Selected as well… Continue reading An Interview with Haki R. Madhubuti: Taught by Women & other Writers (video)

Uncover 1919: A Discussion of Eve Ewing’s 1919

The MVCC Black Student Association holds an in-depth discussion of “1919” by Eve L. Ewing. Her award-winning collection of poems explores the Chicago Race Riot of 1919 through poetry. This discussion is moderated by Dr. Amani Wazwaz and it part of the Black History Month celebration and the One Book, One College program. Visit our… Continue reading Uncover 1919: A Discussion of Eve Ewing’s 1919

“Hair Love”

I met a friend for lunch in early January of this year. Conversation turned to an acquaintance of hers that was involved in an animated film. She told me that the writer/director and the rest of their team were hoping for an Oscar nomination for “Hair Love“. “This is a 6 minute animated short film… Continue reading “Hair Love”

Katherine Johnson 1918 – 2020

Today marks the passing of one of the great minds of mathematics. Katherine Johnson, a mathematician at NASA during the Space Race, contributed to projects such as America’s first human space flight, the first moon landing, and the Space Shuttle. In 2015 she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honor given to civilians,… Continue reading Katherine Johnson 1918 – 2020

New to Collection: The Life of Frederick Douglass Graphic Novel

New to the collection is a graphic novel biography, The Life of Frederick Douglass, written by David F. Walker with art by Damon Smyth. It tells the story of Douglass’s life through beautiful illustrations. He lived during the 19th century, was born into slavery in Maryland, learned to read even though it was forbidden to slaves, and… Continue reading New to Collection: The Life of Frederick Douglass Graphic Novel