Celebrating Black History Month 2023 - The Opportunity Network

The story of Black History Month begins in 1915, when the Harvard-trained historian Carter G. Woodson and the prominent minister Jesse E. Moorland founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), an organization dedicated to researching and promoting achievements by Black Americans and other peoples of African descent.

Known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), the group sponsored a national Black History week in 1926, choosing the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The event inspired schools and communities nationwide to organize local celebrations, establish history clubs and host performances and lectures.

In the decades that followed, mayors of cities across the country began issuing yearly proclamations recognizing "Black History Week." In 1976 President Gerald Ford officially recognized Black History Month, calling upon the public to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”

Today, Black History Month is a time to honor the contributions and legacy of African Americans across U.S. history and society. With every American president since Ford designating an annual theme for Black History Month, the Black History Month 2023 theme, “Black Resistance,” explores how "African Americans have resisted historic and ongoing oppression, in all forms," since the nation's earliest days.

To learn about some of the incredible individuals who are currently making Black history, read below:

Ledisi

Ledisi Anibade Young, better known simply as Ledisi, is a Grammy-winning R&B and jazz musician, songwriter, producer, and actress. Her name means "to bring forth" or "to come here" in Yoruba, the official language of Nigeria.

Since beginning her musical career in 1995, with the formation of her band Anibade, Ledisi has released 11 studio albums and earned 14 Grammy nominations to date, winning her first for Best Traditional R&B Performance for "Anything For You" in 2021. In 2015, she landed a role in the Oscar-nominated film Selma, portraying gospel legend Mahalia Jackson.

Ledisi is also the CEO of her own record label, Listen Back Entertainment, and is an active advocate for the arts, lobbying for young musicians and protecting the rights of creatives.

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C. Riley Snorton

C. Riley Snorton is a scholar, author, and activist whose work focuses on historical perspectives of gender and race, specifically Black transgender identities. He has taught at the University of Chicago since 2018, jointly appointed in the English Literature department and the Center for Gender and Sexuality Studies. Snorton is the recipient of numerous awards for his research and writing on the histories of Black trans experience, including the John Boswell Prize from the American Historical Association, the Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Nonfiction, and many more. He is the author of Nobody Is Supposed to Know: Black Sexuality on the Down Low (University of Minnesota Press, 2014) and Black on Both Sides: A Racial History of Trans Identity (University of Minnesota Press, 2017).

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Lataisia Jones

Lataisia Jones is one of America’s foremost neuroscientists, currently working at the National Institutes of Health in Washington, D.C. Jones’ research largely focuses on brain development in children and understanding how the two sides of the brain communicate in order to find treatment for children with seizures and neurological disorders.

In 2020, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the largest general scientific society in the world, nominated Jones to be the IF/THEN Ambassador, a role designed to inspire young women to explore S.T.E.M. careers through outreach, education, advocacy, and media presence. Jones is dedicated to providing a role model to young girls from underrepresented groups, as she recognizes the importance of having a mentor that looks like you and has gone through similar experiences as you.

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