Contact: Sasha Steinberg
STARKVILLE, Miss.âFrom art to film and writing to discourse, Mississippi ´ķĪķAPP is hosting a variety of free programs in February to commemorate Black History Month.
The celebration kicks off Feb. 12 with âA Tough Row to Hoe: Black Farmers and a History of Struggle in the South,â a 3:45-5 p.m. panel discussion in Fowlkes Auditorium in Colvard Student Union.
Featured speakers include Pete Daniel, former president of the Organization of American Historians and the Southern Historical Association, and retired curator for the Smithsonianâs National Museum of American History; Mark Hersey, MSU associate professor of history; Shandrea D. Stallworth, an MSU plant and soil sciences doctoral student and recipient of the prestigious NASA/Mississippi Space Grant Consortium Graduate Research Fellowship; and Kymara D. Sneed, an MSU history doctoral student from Byron, Georgia. Jim Giesen, MSU associate professor of history and John Grisham Master Teacher, will serve as moderator for the program sponsored by MSUâs African American Studies program and Department of History.
Also free and open to the public, other Black History Month events include:
âFeb. 14, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., âA Celebration of Healthy Black Relationships,â where participants can take pictures at a selfie station to celebrate black love, affection and friendship. MSUâs Holmes Cultural Diversity Center and the Department of Health Promotion and Wellness are hosting this event on Colvard Student Unionâs first floor.
âFeb. 19, 6-7:30 p.m., a keynote presentation by Kiese Laymon, author of âHeavy: An American Memoirâ and âHow to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America.â Laymon will discuss his life and work with those gathered in Turner A. Wingo Auditorium in Old Main Academic Center. The event is sponsored by the African American Studies program.
âFeb. 20, 7-9 p.m., âImitation of Life,â a photography exhibition in which artists examine underlying social conventions and normative values, will be on display in Colvard Student Unionâs second-floor art gallery. In addition to viewing reinterpretations of such classical works of Western art as Botticelliâs âPrimaveraâ and âThe Birth of Venus,â attendees can enjoy refreshments during a reception in the Unionâs Old Main Lounge near the art gallery. MSUâs Society of African American Studies and African American Studies program are event sponsors.
âFeb. 21, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Black Faculty and Staff Mixer, a networking event sponsored by MSUâs Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion. Designed to strengthen connections among members of the Bulldog family who work on campus, the program takes place at the cafÊ inside Barnes and Noble at MSU.
âFeb. 21, 7 p.m., âSay Her Name: The Life and Death of Sandra Blandâ film screening in McCool Hallâs Taylor Auditorium. MSUâs Gender Studies program is event sponsor.
âFeb. 23, 8 p.m., âThe Hate U Giveâ film screening in Bill R. Foster Ballroom on Colvard Student Unionâs second floor. The Holmes Cultural Diversity Center is the sponsor.
For more information on Black History Month events at MSU, contact the Holmes Cultural Diversity Center at 662-325-2033.
Learn more about MSUâs African American Studies program and the Society of African American Studies at ; Gender Studies program at ; Department of Health Promotion and Wellness at ; Department of History at ; Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion at ; and Holmes Cultural Diversity Center at .
MSU is Mississippiâs leading university, available online at .