Portland Black History Events

Black History Night at Evergreen High

"Where have we been and where are we going?" That's the theme of Black History Night at the Evergreen High School cafeteria in Vancouver Friday, Feb. 20 from 6 to 8 p.m. Speakers include Debi Jenkins of Clark College, Officer Rey Reynolds, the Groove Nation dancers, and the De La Salle Choir. This is a community event and soul food potluck, bring a dish of your choice.

Oregon Action to Hold Racial Profiling Meetings

Oregon Action will hold the first in a series of public meetings about the issue of racial profiling by the Portland Police.
The Black History Month meeting, featuring City Commissioner Amanda Fritz, will be held Feb. 21 from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at Redeemer Lutheran Church, 5431 NE 20th Ave.

Facets of Africa

Portland's most vibrant performing artists share legends and personal tales representing the many facets of Africa based culture in Facets of Africa, through Feb. 26, Tuesdays and Thursdays 10 a.m. and Saturday Feb. 21, 2 p.m. at the Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center, 534- N. Interstate Ave.
The IFCC presents artists and storytellers from a variety of African countries and African-based cultures to celebrate the diversity within African culture. Join the performers for a discussion after the show.

"Perfection": A Play About Eugenics

The play "Perfection" runs at the IFCC theater through Feb. 28, Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Perfection is directed by Drammy Award winner and acclaimed veteran stage actor Brenda Phillips, and will be presented throughout February, in honor of Black History Month.
The American Eugenics movement sprang up in the early 1900's, supported by scientists, religious leaders and social workers. A powerful wave of fanatical public opinion swept the country, resulting in state laws that required the forced sterilization of hundreds of thousands of men, women and children. For tickets call 503–205-0715


Thirteen.org features 'Broadcasting While Black'

In honor of Black History Month, Thirteen.org has developed a new web project titled "Broadcasting While Black." Throughout the month of February, Thirteen.org will feature a series of articles and archival videos focusing on early WNET Black-produced programs, like "Soul!" (1968-1973), episodes of "Black Journal" and "Inside Bed Stuy," which aired for 2 seasons from 1969-1971 and was the first program of its kind to revamp the image of Bed Stuy in the 70s -- not as a crime-ridden Black ghetto but a place of community.


Civil Rights Digital Library

The Civil Rights Digital Library created by the University of Georgia in Athens gathers together many of the nation's civil rights collections through its ambitious Web portal -- http://crdl.usg.edu/voci/go/crdl/home/ -- while the Crossroads to Freedom Digital Library – www.crossroadstofreedom.org -- at Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee, uses its hometown collections to stimulate a community conversation on the impact of the civil rights movement on Memphians. The projects demonstrate how digital libraries can preserve and extend access to important historical collections and serve as a valuable resource for teaching, learning, research, and community engagement.