Breaking (new) Ground

Black History Month at Oberlin is a mechanism by which many of our community members have become enlightened by the history, politics, and economics of the African diaspora. Over the years, the celebration has extended into the arts, literature, and performance aesthetics that make the Oberlin experience much more enriching than what occurs at many other colleges and universities.

Oberlin students, the African American studies department, Afrikan Heritage House, and the Multicultural Resource Center have worked together for years to make this celebration a meaningful program for all of us. Our mission is to engage the Oberlin community through academic, cultural, and social events that celebrate the history, legacy, and future of the African diaspora. We hope to stimulate dialogue about, and increase awareness of issues facing people of African descent throughout the world.

The Black History Celebration has been widely attended by students, faculty, and staff as well as Oberlin residents. We hope that you will continue to support our efforts to make the annual Black History Celebration programs enriching for the entire Oberlin College community.

Breaking (new) Ground

This theme for Oberlin's 2012 Black History Celebration, Breaking (new) Ground, aims to remind us of Oberlin’s history as a radical institution dedicated to issues of social justice and inclusion in the United States and abroad.

The year 2012 marks the 177th and 175th anniversary of Oberlin’s admittance of African Americans and women, respectively, into the college, which produced the likes of Mary Jane Patterson, considered the first African American woman to attain a bachelor’s degree from an established four-year college, and civil rights attorney Jacqueline Berrien, who heads the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in the administration of President Barack Obama.

While last year’s celebration, “What Does It Mean To Us?,” sought to reflect on the history of the creation of Black History Month and the direct involvement black youth had in shaping the movement, this year’s celebration encourages the youth on Oberlin’s campus to continue reflecting on vital and radical moments in our history as an institution of high learning and a strong community of people rooted in northeastern Ohio, as well as a myriad of places around the world.

This year’s celebration is a chance to be inspired by the forward thinking and ever-evolving work of our esteemed guests, faculty, staff, and students. It is also, however; a challenge to channel the creative and inspirational spirit of the weeks ahead; to convert that spirit into a kinetic and productive energy that will propel Oberlin College forward and begin to revive its radical tradition; and to pose the question of what great issue we plan to tackle next.

Our hope is that this year’s programs provide distinct moments of dialogue and reflection of the role people of color and women have played in shaping this community and the communities around it, of community-building, and of self-education, and challenges us to ask in what other ways can we break (new) ground?