Feb. 1, 1960. Four brave first-years from A&T University walked into F.W. Woolworth’s and demanded to be served at its whites-only food counter. They would sit, wait and return every day until they were treated fairly. And thus began the widespread sit-in tactic of the civil rights movement right here in Greensboro.
February is an eventful month on campus, due to much work on behalf of the Multicultural Education Department.
Friday, Jan. 6, is the Understanding Racism workshop, a full day event that all community members have something to learn from and offer to. If you have not signed up, we strongly recommend attending the next one.
On Wednesday, Feb. 11, there will be a faculty research presentation, and on the evening on Friday, Feb. 13, a poetry contest entitled The Element will take place in the Community Center.
The events continue throughout the rest of the month, not only on campus but in the larger Greensboro community as well.
The Beloved Community Center, located on Arlington Street downtown, is having a letter writing campaign in which they hope to flood Greensboro City Hall members with letters from community members expressing why we believe All Black Lives Matter.
This weekend there is a national conference happening in Atlanta to discuss police brutality and mass incarceration. People all over the country will be traveling to Atlanta to plan the next steps to continue resisting police abuse.
2015 is expected to be a major turning point for the movement against institutional oppression, and Guilford must be part of it. As members of an institution which proclaims to be anti-racist in nature, we all have a duty to be part of movement in some way.
Black History Month is a solid foundation for raising awareness of the oppression of black lives, but we must not limit this discussion to the shortest month of the year.
Given Guilford’s social justice orientation, we should participate actively and broadly in MED and other organizations’ events not only during Black History Month, but for the entire year. After February ends, we must continue to bring awareness in our community to the past and current oppression of black people.
The issues surrounding Black History Month are not exclusively historical; these issues will continue unless we make our voices heard and act for justice.
