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Explore African American Heritage

Black History Month at the SJR State LibraryFebruary is National African American History Month, popularly called Black History Month, and has been observed nationally since 1976 when President Ford "urged Americans to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”" source For more about the proclamations and legislation related the Black History Month, visit the :aw Library of Congress' Black History Month: A Commemorative Observances Legal Research Guide.

The Black History Month 2024 theme, “African American and the Arts,” explores "the many impacts Black Americans have had on visual arts, music, cultural movements, and more." 

Online Resources

The National Museum of African American History & Culture

Florida Humanities' African American History Archive: An Audio, Print, and Video Bibliography

The official African American History Month site features online exhibits and collections, videos, and images

National Black History Milestones from the History Channel 

African American History at the National Archives

African American History collections online at the Library of Congress

Images of Florida's Black History from the Florida Memory Project

Florida's African American History Trail 

10 National Parks that Honor Black History

Florida's African American History - Resources from the State Library of Florida

The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross - Website intended to support the PBS series of the same name, it provides videos and 100 essays

poet.org's Black History Month page features poems about the Black experience by both classic and contemporary poets, videos, essays on black history and poetics & letters 

30 Films that Celebrate Black Joy and Resilience  

We Out Here is "a space that celebrates the breadth and diversity of Black women year-round" with content provided by Black influencers.

Making Black America

Now Streaming: Making Black America

"This four-hour series, hosted by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., chronicles the vast social networks and organizations created by and for Black people-beyond the reach of the “White gaze.” Gates takes viewers into an extraordinary world that showcases Black people’s ability to collectively prosper, defy white supremacy and define Blackness in ways that transformed America itself."

Current students and employee can stream this movie for free from Films on Demand.

A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks

Now Streaming: A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks

movie poster

"For decades, trailblazing photographer Gordon Parks brought the human struggle of the Black community out of the shadows and onto the pages of LIFE magazine. This documentary explores Parks' enduring legacy through the lens of three contemporary photographers, and spotlights his visionary work and its impact on the next generation of artists. An HBO Production."

Current students and employee can stream this movie for free from Films on Demand.