Black History

In the front left corner of the hushed sanctuary in Old North Church sits a box pew lined in plush red velvet, as it might have looked centuries ago.

Black History Month provides an opportunity for people of African descent to reflect on the struggles and joys of the past, celebrate the progress made, and look forward to what is to come. It’s also the shortest month of the year — a rolling joke in the Black community.

On a frigid morning in 1964, students crowded into the assembly hall at St. Mark’s Social Center in Roxbury. Bundled in winter coats and boots, some students wore excited smiles while others stayed straight-faced, waiting. Outside, school buses carrying suburban students waited among piles of snow.

Black folks have a long history of not only creating dynamic and vibrant businesses, but entire business districts, all while surrounded by the ever-present threat and promise of white domestic terrorism.

As we begin the annual national observance of Black History Month, it seems only logical to know about and honor the pioneering Black historians of the 19th century.

A piece of parchment secured with a wax seal is cracked open, revealing a set of pure gut violin strings. The violin familiarly creaks as it is removed from its case, responding to the gentle touch of its musician.

In celebration of the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., members of the Boston Children’s Chorus shared their reflections on what his legacy means to them today.

This weekend marks the first anniversary of the unveiling of the sculpture “The Embrace,” by artist Hank Willis Thomas and MASS Design Group.

The old journals and bulletins chronicle the acts of resistance in places like Mississippi, Louisiana and North Carolina, where Black educators fought against injustice in education under Jim Crow. Those stories are now chronicled in the Black Teacher Archive, a groundbreaking new digital portal that was unveiled at Harvard University last month. 

Nikole Hannah-Jones surveyed the large diverse audience before her in the seemingly open-to-the-sky great hall lobby of Massachusetts College of Art and offered a jovial, light-hearted greeting.