Tag: Black History Month

Celebrating Black History Month

Anne

Bentley Library is proud to celebrate Black History Month!  This month, we are highlighting books, audiobooks, and films that honor Black Voices and Black Stories. Whether ebooks or print books, streaming films or DVDs, or digital audiobooks or CDs we have the resources to help inspire and educate you.

Visit our online Black History Month book and film display to browse, borrow, or place a hold on items. Simply click on a cover and you will be brought right to the material. Place a hold on physical items for pick up in the library or enjoy our digital content from the comfort of your home!

Black History Month Book and Film Display

Dominique 2 Comments

“To my children, for whom I dream that one day soon they will no longer be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

~ Martin Luther King, Jr., dedication in front of his book “Why We Can’t Wait” 

 

View 150 books and DVDs in the library’s front hall for Black History Month starting now! Hear the voices of  past and present African American leaders and rediscover their accomplishments, both in the United States and South Africa. With this display, find works on the people who intensely pursued the rights for blacks to vote and meet advocates for the underserved. Refresh your knowledge of the history and events in this important subject area. Reflect on the work of African American desegregation martyrs. Also browse for beautiful works such as Eyes on the Prize or take home inspirational speeches by outstanding orators on DVD. Check out stirring primary documents such as The Ferguson Report or the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to evaluate exactly what was written that has become so symbolic.

Key events and strong figures from the civil rights movement of the 1960’s

  • Martin Luther King, Jr.
  • Medgar Evers
  • Malcolm X
  • Nelson Mandela

and the leaders of today

  • Angela Davis
  • Barack Obama
  • Henry Louis Gates
  • John Lewis

Mostly non-fiction, this display brings together multiple materials about positive, dynamic leaders and their successes. The Bentley Library is well-stocked with books on history of civil rights and successful African Americans and we limited the array to bring you the best materials. Racism, African American arts, literature, and athletes are minimally represented here, as those are entire areas which could merit their own displays and space was limited. We invite you to explore those topics in our catalog.

The 2017 Black History Month display is intended as a showcase of works by and about great African American figures throughout history, and the gains we have made with their leadership. Although the origins of Black History Month began in 1926 as Negro History Week, the topic has blossomed in scope and the conversation happily continues in many directions well past the month of February every year.

“To the committed supporters of the civil rights movement, Negro and white, whose steadfastness amid confusions and setbacks gives assurance that brotherhood will be the condition of man, not the dream of man.”

~ Martin Luther King, Jr., dedication in the front of his book “Where Do We Go From Here?”

Join the Transcribe-a-thon for Black History Month, Tues. 2/14, 12-4pm

Jaimie

Volunteer to help bring history into the 21st century!

Colored Conventions Project Transcribe-a-thon for Black History Month

Tuesday, February 14, 2017
Drop-in hours 12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
live stream from University of Delaware’s event, 12:00 p.m. -2:00 p.m.
Research Instruction Center (RIC), Room 11, lower level

The Bentley Library is happy to be partnering with the University of Delaware’s Colored Conventions Project for a Black History Month volunteer Transcribe-a-thon! In honor of Frederick Douglass’ birthday, volunteers will gather at libraries across the country to help with a digital transcription project.

Never heard of digital transcription? No problem! All you have to do is read and type!

About the projectTranscribe-a-thon poster

The University of Delaware has digitized hundreds of historic documents from “Colored Conventions” – political strategy meetings held by free and fugitive black citizens both before and after the Civil War. Documents from these meetings tell us about how participants strategized to “achieve educational, labor and legal justice at a moment when Black rights were constricting national and locally.”

Digital versions of these documents are publicly available on the Colored Conventions Project website, but they are difficult to browse. By transcribing the documents into plain text, volunteers help to make the documents text searchable, which allows researchers to read documents on tablets or phones, to conduct keyword searches, and to index terms.

What will I be doing as a transcription volunteer?

Volunteering is simple, and you can help out even if you only have a few minutes to spare. Drop-in to the library’s Transcribe-a-thon in the Research Instruction Center on Tuesday, February 14, from 12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.  Library staff members will be on hand to show you how to submit transcriptions and how to make note of illegible words or other oddities.

A live stream from the University of Delaware from 12:00 p.m – 2:00 p.m will include speakers, a happy birthday song for Frederick Douglass, and more.

Stay for a few minutes or a few hours!  Snacks will be provided.

If you are able, please visit http://coloredconventions.org/welcome-to-transcribe before the event to familiarize yourself with transcription and sign up for an account. For more information, please contact Jaimie Fritz, Project Archivist.