Black History Month Resources and Learning Opportunities

The DEI Learning and Development subcommittee is leading our internal learning journey as a collective United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley staff. Each month, the committee selects a theme to center our learning around. For Black History Month, we wanted to provide a menu of ways for staff to engage: through poetry, short videos, articles, podcasts, movies, virtual museum tours, and even sites within our footprint folks can safely visit. We recognize that everyone wants to learn, and that everyone learns differently – which is why it was so important for us to include ways for everyone to choose their own journey, make it work for their schedule, and, hopefully, deepen their understanding that Black History is American History.  

Articles & Readings

• Learn about the origins of Black History Month (5-minute read)
• What is significant about each day of February? (each day includes a short video or reading related to a historic incident of racial injustice, estimated 5 minutes of content per day)
  • Want some more reading? Check out this entire library related to Black History Month, which really has something for everyone! I know I’ll be spending some time with the writings of Bell Hooks!

Poetry

• Listen to the legendary piece “Still I Rise”, read by the late, great, heroic, Maya Angelou (2.15 minutes)
• If listening to the power of Maya Angelou in this video, or the inspiring Amanda Gorman has you on a poetry/spoken word kick, check out this collection of pieces themed around liberty and slavery.

Video Clips

• Watch the replay of our Where #BlackLivesMatter Meets #MeToo webinar about the intersection of racial and gender justice.
• If you’re looking to engage with a video, check out this Youth Ted Talk “Black History is American History” (7.5 minutes)

Podcast

• Check out this or other episodes of “Black Men Can’t Jump in Hollywood” for open conversations about Black cinema. Available on all major streaming platforms. (This episode is just about 2 hours long)
• If you’re looking for other podcasts to listen to and learn from, this list is a great place to start!

Experiential Learning

• Learn about or visit the African Burying Ground in New Hampshire (just an hour drive from Boston).
• Want to visit some significant locations in Boston? This list offers a great starting point, and history behind landmarks you might walk by every day.
• Maybe you’re wishing you were somewhere else, or at least back inside a museum? Here’s a list of virtual ways to take museum “tours” and visit exhibitions across the country from the comfort of your own couch!