Black History Month

In honor of Black History Month, the Mepham High School Library has a number of books on display from the Schomburg's Black Liberation List for Young Readers. In 2021, Schomburg Center marks 95 years of collecting and preserving Black history, arts, and culture. Additional books are located on the classroom side of the library. All of the books displayed are available for checkout. We were also the recipient of the Hachette Book Giveaway from Overdrive. We received 9 eBooks and 1 audiobook. The titles include:

• 47 by Walter Mosley
• The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. edited by Clayborne Carson
• Becoming Kareem: Growing Up On and Off the Court by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Raymond Obstfeld
• Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes
• Proud by Ibtihaj Muhammad
• So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
• Stamped--Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
• Stories for Kids Who Dare to Be Different: True Tales of Amazing People Who Stood Up and Stood Out (unabridged audiobook) by Ben Brooks, Quinton Wintor, Jasmine Blackborow, et. al.
• Tyler Johnson Was Here by Jay Coles
• Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: And Other Conversations About Race by Beverly Daniel Tatum

The History of Black History

According to Infoplease.com, Americans have recognized black history annually since 1926, first as "Negro History Week" and later as "Black History Month." What you might not know is that black history had barely begun to be studied - or even documented - when the tradition originated back in the 20s. "Although blacks have been in America at least as far back as colonial times, it was not until the 20th century that they gained a respectable presence in the history books."

It is Dr. Carter G. Woodson that is credited for the celebration of Black History Month. For more information on who he was and how he created this national celebration click here.

Image taken from TheWebGlossary.com