Black History Month Commemoration in Full Swing

Mary Baldwin University’s annual observance of Black History Month returns to campus for the coming weeks under the theme “Lest We Forget.”

The Rev. Andrea Cornett-Scott, associate vice president for inclusive excellence, explains this year’s topic:

There is a West African idea called sankofa, which means it is not taboo to go back and remember what you have already forgotten. This idea points to the value that people of the African Diaspora put on remembrance and honoring the past. For West Africans and thus African Americans, there is a clear understanding that we stand on the shoulders of those who have come before us. If you do not know where you have been, you do not know where you are going. “Lest We Forget” calls the community to look back and remember our history, culture, story — all of it — with pride because everything that we have been helps shape who we are.

Baldwin Program Board and the Black Student Alliance presented Ain't I a Woman, Feb. 9.
Baldwin Program Board and the Black Student Alliance presented Ain’t I a Woman on Feb. 9.

See the Mary Baldwin events calendar for more on Black History Month activities, including these upcoming events:

  • A screening of the film 4 Little Girls, directed by Spike Lee, at 7:45 p.m. Feb. 12 at the Dixie Theater downtown.
  •  A performance by City Theatre of Richmond with Rodney Williams and Doc Christian at 4 p.m. Feb. 22 in Hunt West.
  • Waynesboro Symphony Orchestra concert features the piano concerto of Florence B. Price — considered the first black woman composer of symphonic music — with piano soloist Lise Keiter, Mary Baldwin professor of music, and guest speaker Morris Phibbs, deputy director of the Center for Black Music Research in Chicago, at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 22 at First Presbyterian Church.