Calendar filling up with events for K. Leroy Irvis Black History Month

The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion has announced a slate of 2021 K. Leroy Irvis Black History Month Celebration events.

The Black History Month program is named for Irvis, a 1954 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law who made a major impact on Pennsylvania as the first Black speaker of the state House. 

While events are still being finalized, the office has compiled a series of programs taking place virtually throughout Pitt dedicated to Black history. If departments wish to have their event added to the list of events, they can submit event information through the Inclusion Network Black History Month channel.

Check the Black History Month Celebration website daily for new event listings.

The 2021 Black History Month events include:

Educators for Black Lives: 5-6 p.m. Feb. 2. Denisha Jones and Jesse Hagopian discuss their new book, “An Uprising for Educational Justice: Black Lives Matter At School.”

Youth Organizing: 5-6 p.m. Feb. 3. Chris Rogers from BLM in Schools and Nicholas Anglin from Black, Young, and Educated talk about their community organizing work and how adults can support youth leadership. 

The Honest Struggle: Living as a Target”: 7 p.m. Feb. 4 and 5. The Pitt Jazz program in collaboration with City of Asylum will present a live screening of the film “The Honest Struggle” by filmmaker Justin Mashouf, followed by a panel discussion and a musical performance.

African Studies Book Club: “His Only Wife”: Noon-1:30 p.m. Feb. 5. The African Studies Book Club will discuss “His Only Wife,” by Peace Adzo Medie, a Pitt African Studies alumna and women’s rights advocate. 

Transnational Dialogues in Afrolatinidad: Gender, Identity, and Health: 1 p.m. Feb. 5. The second entry in the webinar series “Transnational Dialogues in Afrolatinidad” will explore issues relating to gender, race, identity, and health, through the experiences of Afro-Brazilians, Afro-Argentines, and U.S.-based Afro-Latinxs. 

Social Justice and Publicly Available Data: 10-11 a.m. Feb. 10. This workshop will use publicly available data to study the intersection of health and income, education, pollution, housing, and healthy/risky behaviors. 

Black Lives Matter reading group: Louis M. Maraj, “Black or Right: Anti/Racist Campus Rhetorics”: Noon-1 p.m. Feb. 10. The Black Lives Matter reading group will discuss the book “Black or Right: Anti/Racist Campus Rhetorics” by Louis Maraj, an assistant professor in the Department of English Composition Program.

Pediatric Grand Rounds: “Impact of Racism on Child and Adolescent Health”: 8-9 a.m. Feb. 11.

Maria Trent, professor of pediatrics at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, will give a lecture on the evolution of race and racism in the U.S. and how it has negatively impacted the health and well-being of children, adolescents and families. Then she’ll talk about tangible steps to address the issues.

Let's Talk Africa: The Past, Present, and Future of Women and Law in Africa: 1-2:30 p.m. Feb. 11. Ari Tobi, a retired magistrate-judge, will discuss the pre-colonial to postcolonial experiences of African women in law, from a jurisprudential viewpoint.

White Privilege in Information: 1-2 p.m. Feb. 11. This event will discuss the various ways systemic structures of white privilege are embedded in American culture.

Tiffany King on "Red and Black Alchemies of Flesh: Off the Shores of Work": 4-5:30 p.m. Feb. 11. A Tiffany King, associate professor of women’s, gender, and sexuality studies at Georgia State University, will discuss her second book project, tentatively titled “Black and Red Alchemies of Flesh: Conjuring Black and Native Feminist Abolitionist and Decolonial Presents and Futures.” This is part of a series titled "Global Indigeneities: Parallels and Intersections in the Global Fight for Reparations and Treaty Rights." 

"George Barbour: Journalist" Screening and Discussion: 7-8:30 p.m. Feb. 11. The University Library System and Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion will screen filmmaker Ken Love’s documentary, a compilation of interviews with George Barbour discussing his career leading up to the Selma-to-Montgomery March.

African Pianism: A Tribute to J.H. Kwabena Nketia and Akin Euba: 7:30 p.m. Feb. 11. Eric Moe, professor of music, will perform a recital of solo piano works by Pitt professors of ethnomusicology J.H. Kwabena Nketia and Akin Euba. 

Celebrating Black Excellence: Noon-1 p.m. Feb. 13. Past Pitt African-American Alumni Council endowed scholarship recipients winners will share how the financial support from alumni have contributed to their educational and professional success.

Rooted in Strength: The Resiliency of Black Families: 3-4:30 p.m. Feb. 18. This panel discussion, featuring community engagement, health and social service experts, will talk about ways to better support families through the pandemic and beyond.

Hesselbein Lecture featuring Shaun Leonardo: “Transforming Systems Through Art”: 1-2 p.m. Feb. 19. As a part of the Hesselbein Lecture at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, Shaun Leonardo, co-director of Recess Art, a nonprofit art space, will discuss ways to repair the harms of systemic racism through initiatives like Assembly, a nonprofit program he founded to fight mass incarceration through arts education.

Talking About Whiteness: Racial and Ethnic Minorities in Eastern Europe, Russia, and Central Asia: 2-3:30 p.m. Feb. 19. This presentation, a part of the “Race in Focus” with the Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies, will examine systemic inequality, how communities are often minoritized along racial lines and more.

Book Presentation: Christel N. Temple, “Black Cultural Mythology”: 4-5:30 p.m. Feb. 19. Christel N. Temple, an associate professor of Africana Studies at Pitt, will give a lecture regarding her book “Black Cultural Mythology,” followed by a discussion.

Reimagining Liberation: How Black Women Transformed Citizenship in the French Empire”: 3-4 p.m. Feb. 23. Annette Joseph-Gabriel will discuss her book on the often-unacknowledged leadership of Black women in anticolonial movements in France, Africa, and the Caribbean.

#BLM: Reception in Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia: 2-3:30 p.m. Feb. 26. Part of the “Race in Focus” series, this event will explore how the Black Lives Matter Movement revived global conversations about racism and systemic inequity.