Posted inArts and Culture

Protests, mass walkouts, building takeovers by Black students at Kent State lead to first Black History Month in 1970 

More than five decades ago, one of the first Black History Month celebrations was held at Kent State University. It was filled with special programs that focused on educating participants about African American culture. The February 1970 events led with the opening of a Black Culture Center and included lectures from Babatunde Olatunji, a Nigerian drummer and founder of the first Center of African Culture in the U.S., and Gwendolyn Brooks, the first Black woman to win the Pulitzer Prize.

Gift this article