February is Black History Month. Each year, the Association for the Study of African American Life and History sets a theme, and this year’s theme is looking back at a century of Black history celebrations in the United States. In 1926, Carter G. Woodson officially announced Negro History Week, which would later become Black History Month.
One hundred years later, how is Black History Month celebrated—or not celebrated—in our communities? How do people observe Black History Month in New Bedford, on Martha’s Vineyard and in Woods Hole?
To help us answer these questions, we talk with Dr. Lee Blake, president of the New Bedford Historical Society; Lawrence Jones, director of outreach at the African American Heritage Trail of Martha’s Vineyard; and Dr. Ambrose Jearld Jr., retired marine fisheries biologist and former chair of the Woods Hole Diversity Advisory Committee.
Image credit: Courtesy of the New Bedford Historical Society
Image caption: The New Bedford Historical Society restored the Nathan and Mary "Polly" Johnson House, located on 7th Street. The Johnsons were Black business owners who lived in the house in the 1800s and were part of the anti-slavery movement.
