Wessels Library is proud to be partnering with the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging to celebrate Black History Month. Wessels is looking forward to honoring notable African American figures and literature, as well as celebrating our African American faculty, staff, and students.
Black History Month got its start in 1976 by Gerald Ford, but it has its origins 50 years prior to this. In 1926, Carter G. Woodson, a teacher, a scholar, and the second African American to receive a Ph.D. from Harvard University, was inspired to start a week of celebration in February which was meant to coincide with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass, a former slave and abolitionist, and President Abraham Lincoln, who brought an end to slavery. As a teacher, he saw African American History not being taught well in schools, which spurred him to action. President Ford welcomed the month and asked Americans to do the same, honoring the "courage and perseverance" of the U.S.'s African American Community. (11 Black History Facts in Honor of Black History Month). This year's theme is "African Americans and Labor," celebrating and honoring their contributions.
