Skip to main content

A Month of Black History Exploration

Black History Month 2024

In recognition of Black History Month, the OIDI education team has curated a variety of books, podcasts, music, and films that showcase the rich culture and history of Black people. We take much joy in sharing these materials with you. By deepening our connection to one another through education, we continue the journey of fostering the community we seek in the wider world.

Follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and X for our weekly release of books, podcasts, and more! 

Pictured above is a closeup of Black, gay actor Colman Domingo posing pensively while wearing shades that reflect a civil rights protest.Rustin
Watch | Narrative or Doc Film

Bayard Rustin was a civil rights activist who was not only an integral part of the March on Washington but also provided key understandings of non-violent tactics and ideas to Dr. King. His role in the civil rights movement was not well known because he lived openly gay man. Rustin is a narrative retelling of his work and advocacy. In this film, we get a snapshot of the man behind the largest civil rights demonstration in United States History.

 

 

The cover of the book How We Show Up written in red and orange text that is placed inside a white circle. Beneath that text is multicolored braids interconnected with one another.How We Show Up, Mia Birdsong
Read | Book/Essay/Interview

“In How We Show Up, I show that what separates us isn’t only the ever-present injustices built around race, class, gender, values, and beliefs, but also our denial of our interdependence and need for belonging. In response to the fear and discomfort we feel, we’ve built walls, and instead of leaning on each other, we find ourselves leaning on concrete.

Through research, interviews, and stories of lived experience, How We Show Up returns us to our inherent connectedness where we find strength, safety, and support in vulnerability and generosity, in asking for help, and in being accountable. Showing up—literally and figuratively—points us toward the promise of our collective vitality and leads us to the liberated wellbeing we all want.” – Mia Birdsong

a faceless cartoon of Elvis Mitchell, a Black film critic and host of The Treatment. The background is rows of seats with two spotlights on Elvis Mitchell, signifying the center stage, with a purple background. The words “The Treatment” are hanging above in bold.The Treatment with Elvis Mitchell
Listen | Music or Podcast

The Treatment is a compelling listen to the vital conversations about the catalysts of creative inspiration. Following some of the most interesting, influential, and crossover creators in the world of entertainment, fashion, sports, and the arts, we hear from tastemakers who are the very fabric that forms popular culture.

 

the abstract artwork of Torkwase Dyson, a Black interdisciplinary artist, that shows their piece with a unique curvilinear and rectangular hypershape with grey and black color.A Mini-Course Offered by the NU Emeriti Organization and EPL, Feb. 6 @ 6 p.m. (Virtual and in-person)
View | Art/Artist Spotlight

The instructor will be Prof. emerita D. Soyini Madison of Northwestern's Department of Performance Studies. Her mini-course will examine the increasing interest of Black artists in abstract art forms. The two sessions of this mini-course will include images of Black abstract art and interviews with the artists, from the past to the present, to expand notions of abstraction, practices of technique, and the imaginings of beauty.

four white men and one young Black child standing, and three Black men sitting. The four white men are wearing professional-like attire in white, whereas the three Black men are wearing darker-colored clothes. The young Black boy is also wearing darker-colored clothes and has a look of distress. Everyone appears to be in Crownsville State Hospital.Book Took | Race and Madness: A Discussion between Antonia Hylton and Jonathan Metzl, Feb. 7 @ 5:30 p.m.
Event | Book Talk

Antonia Hylton, journalist and author of the recently published Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum, in conversation with Jonathan Metzl. Madness takes a hard look at how psychology was used to oppress Black Americans, from misconceptions during slavery to post-slavery abuses in institutions like Maryland’s Crownsville Hospital. Join the conversation to deepen your understanding of the historical intersection of race and mental health.

 

Francia Márquez, Colombia’s first Black Vice President, is shown standing on a stage wearing a traditional African print on a brown and blue dress, paying homage to her Afro-Latina heritage. Facing her is a crowd of people, seemingly excited, many of which are waving flags, others recording and taking pictures of her as she exits the stage.Igualada (2024), dir. Juan Mejia Botero
Watch | Narrative or Doc Film

In one of Latin America’s most unequal countries, Francia Márquez — a Black Colombian rural activist — challenges the status quo with a presidential campaign that inspires a nation to dream.

The cover of A Little Devil in America captures the essence of the book’s exploration of Black performance in America. In the center, the silhouette of a young Black boy with an older man is shown mid-dancing, with the words “A Little Devil in America” in white bold hanging above them. Above that are the words “The Praise of Black Performance” in italicized font in red. At the very bottom of the image, The New York Times is quoted stating “Devastating”, and the Minneapolis Star Tribune stating, “A masterpiece”, as they reflect on the book.A Little Devil in America, Hanif Abdurraqib
Read |Book/Essay/Interview

"I was a devil in other countries, and I was a little devil in America, too." Inspired by these few words, spoken by Josephine Baker at the 1963 March on Washington, MacArthur "Genius Grant" Fellow and bestselling author Hanif Abdurraqib has written a profound and lasting reflection on how Black performance is inextricably woven into the fabric of American culture.

In the center features Ahmir K. Thompson, professionally known as Questlove, who is a Black, multi-talented artist most known for his musical skills as a drummer. This image shows Questlove in the center wearing a navy blue hoodie, smiling with his eyes closed wearing black, square-shaped glasses and a blue hairpick in his afro. The background shows an ombre of purple and pink, with the words “Questlove Supreme” hanging above himQuestlove Supreme
Listen | Music/Podcast

Questlove Supreme is a fun, irreverent and educational weekly podcast that digs deep into the stories of musical legends and cultural icons.

 

 

Party Time shows four Black figures, dressed in party attire and gold jewelry dancing. The four figures are in front of red, light blue, ochre, and dark blue backgrounds, oriented with their heads towards the center of the painting, dynamically occupying the space of the canvas and beyond. In this painting in particular, Ringgold achieved what she called a “poly-rhythmical space,” where action is happening on the entire canvas, not only in one small area of focus.Exhibit: Faith Ringgold: American People, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago( ends Feb. 25, 2024)
View | Art/Artist Spotlight

Artist, author, educator, and organizer Faith Ringgold is one of the most influential cultural figures of her generation, with a career linking the multidisciplinary practices of the Harlem Renaissance to the political art of young Black artists working today. Ringgold’s best-known series—such as her experimental story quilts, renowned painting series American People and Black Light, soft sculptures, performance objects, and ephemera related to her activist work—the exhibition examines the artist’s figurative style as it evolved to meet the urgency of political and social change.