UCLA celebrates Black History Month
An authors series showcasing topics on African-American history and experience, a panel discussion highlighting student diversity in higher education, artistic and cultural exhibitions, lectures, and a symposium on race in Hollywood are among the events planned by UCLA for Black History Month this February.
This exhibition explores the power and prevalence of "two-ness" in Yoruba art and thought with an impressive display of more than 250 carved-wood twin memorial figures known as ere ibeji. The Yoruba, who live in southwestern Nigeria, as well as Togo and Benin, have one of the highest rates of twin births in the world, and special attention is paid to twins, both during life and after.
In 19th-century southern Africa, highly individualized arts of personal adornment experienced a florescence among isiZulu speakers, today known as the Zulu. This collection features 79 pieces.
Noon–1 p.m.
Jonathan Holloway, a professor of history, American studies and African-American studies at Yale University, will discuss his new book, "Jim Crow Wisdom: Memory and Identity in Black America since 1940." Holloway specializes in post-Emancipation U.S. history, with a focus on cultural and intellectual history.
4:30–6:30 p.m.
Adams Bodomo, professor of African studies at Austria's University of Vienna, will discuss contemporary Africa–China relations and the increasing number of Africans visiting and settling in China. The Coleman Memorial Lecture honors the memory of James S. Coleman, founder of the UCLA African Studies Center and a pioneer in the field of African studies.
Noon–1 p.m.
As part of its "Race and Hollywood" project, the UCLA Bunche Center is conducting a comprehensive analysis of diversity — or the lack thereof — in the film and television industries. This event will highlight findings from the first full report on Hollywood diversity, which will be released in February. The event will also feature papers by the project's research team.
Thursday, Feb. 6
Noon
Zulu speakers, South Africa's most populous ethnic group, have produced highly individualized arts of personal adornment for centuries. From sculpted staffs to intricate beadwork, these intimate objects accentuate bodily "zones of power." The Fowler Museum's curator of African arts, Gemma Rodrigues, discusses the development and use of these works, which proclaim status and identity.
Thursday, Feb. 13
Noon–1 p.m.
This moderated panel discussion examining the history of NOMMO, UCLA's Afrikan American Newsmagazine, will feature the magazine's past and present writers and editors and will highlight the newly established UCLA Bunche Center NOMMO archives.
Presented by UCLA and Zócalo Public Square as part of the "Thinking L.A." forum, this panel discussion will explore diversity in American universities and what can be done to bring more students from underrepresented groups to campus — and make them feel welcome. Panelists include Youlonda Copeland-Morgan, UCLA's associate vice chancellor for enrollment management; Michele Siqueiros, executive director of the Campaign for College Opportunity; and Richard D. Kahlenberg, a senior fellow with the Century Foundation. Los Angeles Times reporter Kurt Streeter will moderate.
Shana Redmond, an assistant professor of American studies and ethnicity at the University of Southern California, will discuss her new book, "Anthem: Social Movements and the Sound of Solidarity in the African Diaspora," which examines the sonic politics performed by and between organized Afro-diasporic groups in the 20th century.
Thursday, Feb. 20
Noon–1 p.m.
This event will feature the work of Lena Waithe and Justin Simien. Waithe is the writer–producer of the web series "Sh*t Black Girls Say," and her show "Twenties" recently received a pilot commitment. Simien is a producer–writer–director whose directorial debut, "Dear White People," will premiere at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.
Tuesday, Feb. 25
Noon–1 p.m.
Bunche Center Authors Series Lecture: Akinyele Umoja
Akinyele Umoja, associate professor and chair of the African-American studies department at Georgia State University, will talk about his new book, "We Will Shoot Back: Armed Resistance in the Mississippi Freedom Movement."
Thursday, Feb. 27
Noon–1 p.m. Bunche Center 'Circle of Thought' Lecture: Donna Murch
This event features Bunche Center visiting scholar Donna Murch, who is an associate professor of history at Rutgers University and co-director of the Rutgers Center for Historical Analysis and the Black Atlantic. Her teaching and research focuses on postwar U.S. history, modern African American history, and 20th-century urban studies.
(Parking in the museum's underground lot is $3 after 6 p.m.)
Sponsored by the UCLA Department of Art, this lecture features Los Angeles artist and UCLA alumna Betye Saar, whose work has been the subject of solo exhibitions at the Studio Museum, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art. Saar's work was also part of the Hammer's "Now Dig This! Art and Black Los Angeles 1960–1980" exhibition in 2011–12.
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