Nicka Smith talk at UCOP to close Black History Month
February 21, 2012 •
Black History Month activities wrap up this week with the appearance of Nicka Smith on Wednesday, Feb. 29, 12 to 1 p.m., in Franklin’s Lobby One Conference Room.
Smith represents the African American Genealogical Society of Northern California (AAGSNC), where she serves as chair of the Outreach and Education Committee. The AAGSNC was founded in 1996 to preserve and promote the study of genealogical and historical records relating to African American ancestry.
UC Berkeley School of Law Dean Christopher Edley Jr. launched the celebration with his Feb. 2 talk “UC’s Role in the New Civil Rights Movement.” If you missed it, you can catch it in UC’s Ustream archive.
Throughout the month, displays were exhibited in the Franklin Lobby celebrating eight African American inventors and men and women affiliated with the University of California.
All the activities were sponsored by UCOP’s Black Staff and Faculty Organization (BSFO) to celebrate African American history and raise funds for its BSFO Scholarship Fund, which supports local college-bound African American students.
Black History Month originated in 1926 as Negro History Week, the brainchild of Carter G. Woodson, a historian, Harvard scholar and son of freed slaves. Woodson’s goal was to educate the American people about the culture and achievements of African Americans.
Since 1976 Black History Month has also commemorated the events around the African Diaspora. It is celebrated each February in the United States and Canada and each October in the United Kingdom.
