Celebrate Black History Month
For this year’s Black History event, College Success Assistant Director Christine Harding moderated a discussion among TEAK staff on reimagining the practice and solutions to pressing issues facing black students. The conversation was rooted in themes of (afro) futuristic thinking; a movement that claims black identity through art, history and political resistance. Staff explored the alignment between futuristic thinking and TEAK’s work with students and families: TEAK’s work is rooted in reinventing an equitable future in education.
During the discussion, staff watched two videos by poet scholars Clint Smith and Jamila Lyiscott, exploring themes of black identity, voice, and language / multilingualism. In addition to the conversation, the Culture Committee compiled a list of Black History Month recommendations, including movies, TV shows, podcasts, and local New York City restaurants!
Black History Month resources
Videos:
Clint Smith, The Danger of Silence
“We spend so much time listening to what people say that we rarely pay attention to what they don’t,” says poet and teacher Clint Smith. A brief and powerful heart play, about finding the courage to speak out against ignorance and injustice. “
Jamila Lyiscott, 3 Ways to Speak English
“Jamila Lyiscott is a ‘three-language speaker’; in her powerful oral essay “Broken English”, she celebrates – and challenges – the three distinct flavors of English that she speaks with her friends, in the classroom and with her parents. As she explores the complicated history and current identity that each language represents, she discovers what it means to “articulate”.
Recommended black films that highlight the Black Mutifactuated experience
Soul
Photography
Spider-Man: Into the Universe
Southside with you
Les LoveBirds
The boy who mastered the wind
The incredible Jessica James
To become
Back home
Uncorked
Girls’ trip
Guess Who
Wood
Love and basketball
The best man
Jingle Jangle
Coming to America
One night in Miami
Judas and the Black Messiah
One night in Miami
Recommended TV Shows
Black-ish
Family matters
Unsafe
pose
Living single
Recommended books
Hood Feminism: Notes From Women A Forgotten Movement By Mikki Kendall
BLOOD AND BONE CHILDREN BY TOMI ADEYEMI
You should see me in a crown by Leah Johnson
Who’s Loving You: Love Stories by Women of Color édité par Sareeta Domingo
With fire up by Elizabeth Acevado
Becoming by Michelle Obama
Sulwe By Lupita Nyong’o, illustrated by Vashti Harrison
Bad hair does not exist / Pelo Malo No Existe by Sulma Arzu-Brown
Black Enough: Stories of Being Young and Black in America by Ibi Zoboi
Recommended podcasts
Code switch
Intersectionality matters!
Small doses with Amanda Seales
Spend with Rebecca Carroll
Black Owned Businesses in New York
The illuminated bar
Harlem Hops
180 black-owned businesses
Black owned NY restaurants
Seasoned vegan
Uptown Veg
LA Sweets NY
Black-owned restaurants by district
If you have any other recommendations, share them in the comments section below!
–
