February is...

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...African American History Month. Read President Obama's 2010 proclamation here.

Your library is full of books, eBooks and videos on a wide range of topics relating to African American history. For example, there's this book featured in our new books list not too long ago, The African American Experience: Black History and Culture Through Speeches, Letters, Editorials, Poems, Songs, and Stories. Another recent publication is Best African American Essays, 2009. If you're considering doing any traveling over spring break, you might want to check out On the Road to Freedom: A Guided Tour of the Civil Rights Trail. If you prefer to read your books online, try this eBook, Unfinished Business: Racial Equality in American History. (You'll need an account to view the book from off campus--call or e-mail us to set up an account.) If you would rather watch a video than read a book, we've got a fabulous series, Eyes on the Prize. The first series covers the time period of 1954-1965, while the second series covers 1965-1985. (Our videos must be used in the library, but never fear--we have equipment in the video viewing room.)

There are a lot of great online resources for learning about African American history, too. Federal Resources for Educational Excellence (FREE) is a great place to start.

Have you ever wondered who started African American History Month? The answer is: the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. Click this link to read more about the association and its role in founding African American History Month.

If you're a numbers person, try this link for fascinating statistics from the US Census Bureau. (For example, did you know there were 2.5 million African American college students in 2008? That is more than double the number from fifteen years ago.)

Let's say you're a visual person. Never fear: there's something for you as well. YouTube's educational collection has more than 200 video lectures relating to African American history; click the link to browse the list.

Open Culture provides links to free educational videos (sometimes whole college courses) and podcasts; check out this video from Stanford University: what would Martin Luther King, Jr. think of the U.S.A. today?

Enjoy! (Next month is Women's History Month--so stay tuned.)

Photo courtesy of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History.