Music, dinners, lectures highlight Black History Month celebration at UVa-Wise

The University of Virginia’s College at Wise will celebrate Black History Month with a full slate of events from dinners to lectures and concerts. The celebration will begin Thursday, Feb. 7, with a screening of the Civil War film “Glory.”

The film will be followed by a discussion led by Brian Wills, Kenneth Asbury Professor of History. The free showing will begin at 7 p.m. on the fifth floor of the C. Bascom Slemp Student Center.

The annual Gospelfest will feature a performance by Christian rock and blues band EXIT 33 from Kingsport, Tenn. The band, which began as a prison ministry in 2004, will perform in the C. Bascom Slemp Student Center on Friday, Feb. 8. The 1 p.m. performance is free and open to the public.

On Tuesday, Feb. 12, campus minister Beth Tipton will speak on “Slavery’s Impact on American Protestantism” at 6 p.m. at the Wesley Foundation. The event will include a free dinner.

“The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till” will be the topic of a video presentation given by Gretchen Martin, associate professor of English, at 1 p.m. on the fifth floor of the Student Center on Wednesday, Feb. 13. In 1955, Emmett Till traveled to the Mississippi Delta to visit friends and family. After whistling at a white woman outside of a local grocery store, the young, black, 14-year-old Till was kidnapped, tortured, killed and eventually dumped in the Tallahatchie River. Roy Bryant and J.W. Milan were acquitted of the murder and later told “Look” magazine their confessions of how they killed Till.

The public is invited to dine in Cantrell Hall from 4:30 to 7 p.m. on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14. A steak, chicken and shrimp dinner will be served. The cost of the meal is $8.60, and the meal is free for those with a UVa-Wise meal plan.

UVa-Wise history instructor Preston Mitchell will present “The Story of Dan Richmond” at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 20, in the Student Center. Richmond was a former slave from Lee County who settled 1,000 acres of land on Black Mountain in Wise and in Letcher County, Ky., in the late 19th century, becoming the leader of a small community of freedmen. Musicians Dock Frazier and Clyde Stanley will perform Frazier’s ode to Richmond, “Hey Dan.”

The Black History Month Committee will take submissions for an essay contest, which is open to UVa-Wise students. The 200- to 400-word essays are due Friday, Feb. 22. Prizes will be awarded to the best essays written on each of the following topics:

• Who are the emerging leaders in the civil rights movement today?
• Is race still a factor in America today?
  

Students must choose one topic. Essays should be submitted in printed form to Sandra Jones in Bowers-Sturgill Hall via campus mail. Winners will be announced Friday, Feb. 29.

Two events on Wednesday, Feb. 27, will round out the College’s celebration of Black History Month. A Soul Food Dinner will be served from 11 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. in Cantrell Hall. The cost of the meal will be $5.85, and the meal is free for those with a UVa-Wise meal plan.

Festivities will close with a presentation entitled “John Jasper – Early African-American Preacher” by Brian Wills. Jasper was born a slave in Fluvanna County in 1812 and rose to distinction as one of the most powerful preachers of his time. His long life took him from the Antebellum and Civil War periods through Reconstruction and Jim Crow segregation until his death in 1901. Jasper devoted his life to his divine mission, saying at the end that he had “finished [his] work” and was at the Jordan River “waiting on further orders.” The presentation will begin at 5 p.m. at the Baptist Student Center and includes a free supper.

For more information, contact Sandra Jones at 276-328-0129 or Beth Tipton at 276-328-6826.

Posted February 4, 2008