During the month of February, Georgetown University joins the nation in commemorating Black History Month. We celebrate the many contributions of our Black students, faculty and staff to our community and society, and recognize the broad range of teaching, scholarship and advocacy at Georgetown advancing Black heritage and history.
We invite you this month to visit a new landing page on Black history, culture and scholarship at Georgetown, which includes events and opportunities to partake in this important month-long commemoration.
The first organized national celebration of Black history was conceived by historian Carter G. Woodson in 1925 as a week encompassing the birthdays of both Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. The celebration was expanded to a month by President Gerald Ford in 1976, with each subsequent American president issuing annual Black History Month proclamations.
Students celebrate Black history and heritage, educate their peers and engage in advocacy through a number of student groups, including the Black Leadership Forum, Black Student Alliance, Black American Law Students Association (BALSA), Black Theatre Ensemble and others. The Black House serves as a focal point for Black student life on Main campus and as a gathering space for dialogue among and with students of color.
Georgetown faculty lead a range of departmental and interdisciplinary efforts to advance teaching and scholarship on Black history and heritage, particularly the Department of African American Studies. Faculty – alongside students and staff – continue to be engaged on campus, locally and nationally in efforts to address systemic racism and injustice towards persons of color, such as through the new Racial Justice Institute.
For opportunities to learn more about Black history and heritage, Lauinger Library has created a Recommended Reading display on the 3rd floor and “Black Lives, Black Stories” reading list.