East Brunswick Celebrates Black History Month

East Brunswick Arts Commission, East Brunswick Department of Aging, East Brunswick Department of Recreation, East Brunswick Human Relations Council, East Brunswick Public Library, East Brunswick Youth Council, EBTV and the Lost Souls Public Memorial Project are partnering to celebrate Black History Month this February.

“Nelson Mandela once said, ‘education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world,’” stated East Brunswick Mayor Brad Cohen. “I’m so happy that East Brunswick is out front promoting Black History Month with such a wide variety of educational programs.”

Due to the continuing pandemic, these programs and events will be held online or broadcast on EBTV. The East Brunswick Human Relations Council is hosting a Black History Month Celebration on February 9 at 7:30. Co-hosted with the New Brunswick-Area NAACP and the Rutgers African-American Alumni Alliance, this online event showcases Black history through music, fine arts and more.

East Brunswick Public Library hosts a lecture about the Harlem Renaissance with Randall Westbrook on February 24 at 7:00 pm. A faculty member at Fairleigh Dickinson University, his book Education and Empowerment: The Essential Writings of W.E.B. DuBois was named “One of 30 Books Every African American Should Read” by Jet Magazine Online.

EBTV, the East Brunswick Arts Commission and the East Brunswick Youth Council are recording several special Black History Month programs to be shared on the television network. EBTV also broadcasts a forty-five minute concert of jazz standards and soul classics performed by singer Rhonda Denet. This program is sponsored by the East Brunswick Arts Commission and the east Brunswick Public Library.

The Lost Souls Public Memorial Project released several presentations about their work to memorialize over 177 African Americans kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1818.

All of these programs can be viewed online, either live or prerecorded. A complete guide to the Black History Month programming can be found online at www.ebpl.org/blackhistorymonth.