Local events honor Black history on MLK Day, Black History Month
Original article by Jennifer Timar Livingston Daily, January 16
https://www.livingstondaily.com/story/news/local/community/livingston-county/2022/01/16/black-history-month-mlk-day-sarah-elizabeth-ray-black-history-mobile-museum/6510260001/
Livingston County has been home to some remarkable Black individuals, including the first Black football player in the Big Ten and Howell's first barbershop owner.
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and in advance of Black History Month, local institutions are planning special events to honor the experiences of people from Livingston County, Michigan and the nation.
"A lot of where dissention, disagreement and turmoil comes from is a lack of knowledge and a lack of engagement with the community," Livingston Diversity Council President Nicole Matthews-Creech said.
The diversity council is collaborating with local establishments on several events.
Matthews-Creech said there is a growing awareness that the American history many of us have been taught did not accurately cover the Black experience.
"We were really looking for things that feed that need for history because I think there are a lot of people interested in history right now, especially because we know we didn't get the whole story," she said. "If what we know isn't true, then what else isn't true. People are very curious to know, what else don't we know?"
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, author Desiree Cooper and director Aaron Schillinger will host a virtual presentation on Detroit civil rights pioneer Sarah Elizabeth Ray.
It will be held on Zoom from 6:30-8 p.m. through the Howell Carnegie District Library. Registration for the free event closes one hour before the program starts. Register online at howelllibrary.libcal.com/event/8154960
"Seventy-five years ago, a 24-year-old, African American secretary was denied a seat on the segregated Boblo boat, SS Columbia. Like Rosa Parks, she refused to back down, taking her fight for integration all the way to the United States Supreme Court," according to the diversity council's event description.
"Represented by fabled NAACP lawyer Thurgood Marshall, Ray won her case. Scholars argue that she paved the way for the seminal 1954 Brown v. Board of Education, which found that separate was inherently unequal."
The event is presented by the library, the diversity council and the League of Women Voters of Livingston County.
Black History 101 Mobile Museum coming to town
A mobile museum of memorabilia dating from the trans-Atlantic slave trade to contemporary hip-hop culture is coming to Cleary University.
Khalid el-Hakim founded the Black History 101 Mobile Museum after decades of collecting materials that chart the Black experience.
“It’s a whole different experience than seeing it in a textbook,” el-Hakim said in a release.
He said he was inspired to begin collecting artifacts by Ferris State University sociology professor David Pilgrim, who founded the Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia.
“Shortly after taking his class I started going to antique shops, used book stores, garage sales and flea markets and such, picking up Jim Crow related material," el-Hakim said in the release. "Then I made the conscious decision to collect things that represented the whole Black experience in America."
Matthews-Creech said el-Hakim will be with the exhibit to talk to visitors.
"Khalid comes with his collection. He’s there to answer questions and engage in conversations with people," she said.
The Black History 101 Mobile Museum will be on display 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 29 through Feb. 2 at the Cleary University Student Commons Center.
el-Hakim will give a lecture on his collection from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Feb. 2.
More local Black history events
Just Mercy
The Historic Howell Theater will have a special one-night screening at 7 p.m. Feb. 11 of 2019 film "Just Mercy" starring Michael B. Jordan and Jamie Foxx.
"World-renowned civil rights defense attorney Bryan Stevenson works to free a wrongly condemned death row prisoner," according to the film's description on IMDb.
"It’s a really touching film and it inspires a lot of conversation," Matthews-Creech said. "It goes back to everything we’re all struggling with right now. We're hearing a lot of political interpretations of high-profile cases. We're hearing different slants on these stories."
Admission is free and seating is limited. The Livingston Diversity Council will accept donations to cover the cost of the event.
Children's book authors giving virtual readings
From noon to 1 p.m. Feb. 15, two children's book authors will give readings online during the Livingston Diversity Council's monthly Learn, Love, Livingston webinar series. Video of the readers will be posted to the council's YouTube channel after the livestream.
Authors Sonya Bernard-Hollins and Sean Hollins wrote a children's book about barber Benjamin Losford, entitled "Benjamin Losford and His Handy, Dandy Clippers." The book is illustrated by Kenjji Jumanne-Marshall.
Abraham Losford, who escaped slavery and later freed his son Benjamin from a Kentucky slave plantation, is credited as Howell's first Black resident in 1854. He opened a barbershop in town.
"During a stagecoach stop in Howell, the people of Howell promised to keep him safe if he would open a barbershop, which they needed," Matthews-Creech said.
Benjamin Losford carried on the family business, becoming the first Black business owner in Edmore.
Author LaTashia M. Perry will read her children's book "Hair Like Mine," which is illustrated by Bea Jackson.
The children's book tells the story of a young Black girl who set out to find someone with natural, curly hair like hers.
"There is a hair bill sitting, waiting with no action on it. I think (the book) is interesting because it has a connection to what's going on right now," Matthews-Creech said.
A dive into Howell's Black history
The Howell Opera House will host a luncheon featuring local historian Lindsay Root from noon to about 1:30 p.m. Feb. 25. Tickets are $40.
Root dove into Howell's history after getting interested in the story of George Henry Jewett II, who coached Howell High School's first football team in the 1890s. Jewett was the first Black football player in the Big Ten. He played for the University of Michigan and Northwestern.
When Michigan beat Northwestern last year, the Wolverines took home the newly established George Jewett Trophy.
"Root talks about his journey finding this history that is really rich. He went to look for George Jewett and came across other folks with these interesting histories," Matthews-Creech said.
The event will also feature Creole barbecue for lunch.
Contact Livingston Daily reporter Jennifer Timar at jtimar@livingstondaily.com. Follow her on Twitter @jennifer_timar.
https://www.livingstondaily.com/story/news/local/community/livingston-county/2022/01/16/black-history-month-mlk-day-sarah-elizabeth-ray-black-history-mobile-museum/6510260001/
