“A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.”

- Marcus Garvey

It’s February so you know what that means… It is time to celebrate Black History Month!  28 days of Blackness everywhere, in schools, on tv, online, on social media, on streaming platforms, this is the one month of all Black everything.  I am 45 and I am still not sure how I feel about that.  Let me pause right here and say that it is ok if you love it, it’s ok if you hate it, it’s ok if you don’t know how to feel about it.  I get what Carter G. Woodson and Jesse E. Moorland were going for back in 1926 when they created “Negro History Week” during the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln (Black History Month became a month long-celebration in 1976).  But still, it has never quite sat right in my spirit.  Black history is American history so we should learn it all year round in any history class not just as a special elective in Africana Studies.  But then there’s the argument that there is no White history month so there should not be a Black one.  In America, all history has been white American history since the country’s founding. We are supposed to know better now so we must continue to intentionally highlight the contributions and experiences of the multitude of cultures that make up this nation.  Contrary to what gets said a lot, America has never been just Black & white, it has always been in living color. 

When I was in school in the 1980’s, the only time we talked about Black people specifically was in February and it went something like this… 

They were in Africa, and then they were slaves and then Harriet Tubman and Fredrick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln and the civil war (we always spent a good amount of time on Lincoln and the civil war) then BOOM, no more slaves. 

There was something called reconstruction and the Great Migration and then Jim Crow (but only in the deepest of the deep south) then Martin Luther the King and Rosa Parks and Civil Rights and then BOOM, no more racism. 

Finally, we would talk about how the Blacks be winning in sports, music, Hollywood, and politics.

There was always a project which was either a book report or a report on a famous Black person.  As we got older, the lessons got deeper, the reports got longer, and the boards and dioramas got more elaborate, but the formula was pretty much the same.  I did a straw poll and for most of my friends, these were the three legs of the Black History Month stool. 

Outside of school, there was always a play at church with little Black kids dressed as their heroes and sheroes.  PBS kept our “Eyes on the Prize” and one of the networks (there were only a few) showed us our “Roots” all eight episodes from Kunta Kinte in Africa to Chicken George sitting on his own land telling his grandchildren their family history.  And my mama and grandma made us watch all of it, every year, every time it came on.  It was a family affair and literal must see TV. 

“Whatever we believe about ourselves and our ability comes true for us.”
- Susan L. Taylor

Now though, see now, things are different.  Now third eyes are opening and the people are waking up.  In that wokeness, there is a rejuvenation in the celebration of our history as we delve into the mystery of the Blackness.  There is a whole entire museum on the National Mall about Black Folx.  Whether you’ve spent hours in the National Museum of African American History & Culture, or learned about Tulsa from Watchmen or Lovecraft Country or learned about Juneteenth from black-ish, hopefully you’re learning.  Learning about who we are and what we have been through.  Not just what America has done to and for us, but also what we have done for America.  Our relationship status with America is… it’s complicated. 

“I love America more than any other country in this world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually.”

- James Baldwin

The Black experience is woven into the very fabric of America, it is stitched with the strength of our sacrifice and dyed with our blood, sweat, and tears.  Maybe, if Black history is no longer a mystery, maybe if the obviousness of our value becomes evident, maybe if the world can see us, as us, in all of our glory, maybe then our humanity can precede our ethnicity, maybe our minds can carry more value than our bodies, maybe it will finally be clear that we are not, in fact, all the same, our experiences and identities are as varied as the stars in the night sky that some of our ancestors followed to freedom.  Maybe, just maybe we can be seen, once and for all, as whole individuals and full citizens in this great nation that we call home better yet, on this planet we call Earth.    

“Defining myself, as opposed to being defined by others, is one of the most difficult challenges I face.”
- The Honorable Carol Moseley-Braun

I’ve spent a lot of time focused on how others see Blackness.  That matters, but what is most important is how you see it.  So, what am I asking you to do?

1.     Learn YOUR history. Families vary wildly.  Whether your ancestry is the proverbial melting pot, or generations of your family all still live in the same town, or you are the only ones from your family in this country, we are all within the diaspora.  Make some time to interview a relative about your family’s history. Grandparents are a great place to start.

2.     Be anchored in YOUR identity.  No one gets to tell you what kind of ____ person you are.  Do not conflate the convenience of labels for your categorization for the ascribing of stereotypes to your character.

3.     Document YOUR experiences. Write it down, make a voice memo on your phone, do something to capture what you think, how you feel, and what you’ve done.  Trust me, you will wish you had twenty years from now, I sure do.

4.     Share YOUR story.  You are a living, breathing, epic example of history in the making.  Your story is still being written, but know that your excellence is inspirational, so inspire someone with it. 

“History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, however, if faced with courage, need not be lived again.” 

- Maya Angelou

Application Deadline: February 15, 2021

Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day (URCAD) is celebrating its 25th anniversary! Due to the COVID-related campus closure, URCAD XXV will be held online again this spring. You will be able to view presentations, watch films, see video of dance and music performances, view artwork, and interact with presenters during the asynchronous event.

Last April, 251 students presented their research and creative work, and thousands of visitors logged on the URCAD online via an interactive platform called VoiceThread. Nothing can compare to being together to be able to celebrate all of the research, scholarship, and creative work of our talented UMBC undergraduate students. Experiencing the live dance performances, being able to talk face to face with students about their research, or being able to take a ride on a kinetic sculpture are things that are meant to be experienced in person, and the energy of hosting URCAD on campus is irreplaceable. But last year’s online event provided a unique experience for visitors to explore the presentations and to interact with presenters in really meaningful ways. The online format also expanded URCAD to a global event- visitors logged on from as far away as Korea and the U.K. 

Mark your calendars for the week of April 19-23, 2021 for URCAD XXV Online!

You can still view the presentations form 2020 here: https://urcad.umbc.edu/departments/

We will host several workshop to help students prepare their online presentations.

Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day (URCAD) features research, scholarship, and creative work carried out by UMBC undergraduates. Student work is shared through oral presentations, posters, artistic exhibits, performances, and film. Over 300 presenters participate annually. Researchers work with faculty mentors on independent research, or research that is part of the mentor’s on-going projects.  They are from all disciplines, and can be working on a thesis, capstone project, part of a scholars or honors program, or they can be unaffiliated.This campus-wide celebration of achievement affirms UMBC’s commitment to the twin goals of research and a distinctive undergraduate experience.

All current undergraduates who have conducted research, scholarship or creative work in the last year may apply to present their results at URCAD. Mentors, fellow students, friends, family members, high school teachers and students, graduate school recruiters, and the general public are invited to attend.

URCAD 2021 Alumni Keynote Speaker

Klaudine Wakasa

Green Economy Advisor to International Governments

’08 B.S. Financial Economics, UMBC
’10 M.Sc. Gender Development and Globalisation, London School of Economics

Klaudine is a Strategy Advisor who has spent her professional career working with government, multilateral/bilateral organizations, and private sectors across the African continent – first as an Advisor within KPMG’s International Development Advisory Service; later as a Strategy Consultant with Dalberg Global Development Advisors; and currently as the Regional lead for the Government of Canada’s effort to build Clean Technology ecosystems in Africa, and for the United Kingdom’s goal of mainstreaming a ‘Green Economy’ approach into its work in Africa. 
(Read more about Klaudine here.)

Questions? Email aprilh@umbc.edu

There are times in life when one experiences so many emotions at once, they become impossible to distinguish.  It’s like mixing all of the colors in art class, only to find a dark puddle of paint, no longer discernible as a particular hue, just darkness. 

I started the day on January 6^th pretty upbeat.  I was getting back into the flow of work.  I had a great holiday season, all things considered.  Things were good. And then, just before 3:00, the texts started rolling in.  “Are you watching this?” “ I can’t believe this.” “Yo this is crazy!” Confused I turned on the news to find something I never thought I’d see… armed insurrectionists breaching the U.S. Capitol.  And a U.S. President, like the scene in The Princess Bride, telling them to have fun storming the castle.  As I watched the events unfold, I had several thoughts. The first and most prevailing and persistent was how different this would play out if the Black and Brown people started a protest that turned into a riot that led to attempting to invade the Capitol.  I shudder to think of the carnage that would have ensued.  The longer it went on, the more I wondered, how is this possible?  How, in the epicenter of freedom and the citadel of democracy, can armed thugs, domestic terrorists gallivant around the Capitol building unchecked and undeterred?  How, in 2021, are we seeing a confederate flag being paraded through the rotunda? The answer is simple, white privilege. 

“When you’re accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression.” – Franklin Leonard

Privilege is defined as a special right, advantage, or immunity granted or available only to a particular person or group. We see privilege but we’re told there is nothing to see here.  We feel that privilege but we are told that we are being too sensitive or playing the race card.  We are asked to choose to ignore what is obvious, what is clear.  The rules are different.  The system has been designed and perpetuated to greatly advantage some while it significantly disadvantages others.  That has always been true in America, America was founded on that principle and built on its benefits.  We have been told that the world is post-racial, but it is hard to unsee the realities that lay in stark contrast to that narrative.  So now what?  Many of you are asking yourselves the fundamental question, what do we do about it? More specifically, what can I do now?  It would be easy to say I don’t know; I don’t have all of the answers; you have to figure it out for you; or some other platitude that absolves me from any responsibility to help guide you as you grow.  I choose not to.  While I cannot give you the right answer for yourself, I can give you some ways to get to it. 

1.     Find your Purpose and your Passion. It doesn’t have to be what you are pursuing to make your living; it does have to be what makes you feel alive.  Own it. Commit to it. Work at it.

2.     Help others. There are people that can use your help, in ways big and small.  Seek them out and offer your time or talents or treasure or all of the above.  I am not asking you to sacrifice everything for the cause or for the culture. But the time has passed to sit idly by. Life is not a spectator sport, that’s not me its Jackie Robinson.

3.     Build and Strengthen your community.  Whatever that community is or looks like for you.  You need support and to support others.

4.     Galvanize and Organize your efforts.  There is strength in numbers and power in different points of view.  Find people or organizations that align with your aforementioned passion and purpose and build with them.  Or start your own and build from there. 

5.     Take care of YOU.  This is a lot on top of a lot coming behind a lot.  It may seem never ending, but it is not.  A new normal will emerge.  The world will reopen.  Between now and then, take care of yourself in real and tangible ways.  If you need help, get help.  If you need help finding the help, just say something, we are here for you.

6.     Take care of Business.  You are here to get your degree.  You have persevered through pandemic, campus closure, zoom, all of it.  You may not be doing as well as you hoped you would, but you are still doing.  Keep showing that Grit and get this done.  The world needs to see the brilliance you have to offer.

My better angel made a great point this morning.  In the movie Monsters Inc., the system is set up to be powered by fear.  They traffic in it, they power their lives with it, they refine their methods to extract it, they are even willing to break rules and laws to gather it.  And yet, (spoiler alert) in the end, they find out that laughter is 10X more powerful than fear.  What is true in the wonderful world of Disney is true for us too.  As you wrestle with your resolutions for the coming year, make one above all, if you haven’t, choose Joy.   

“Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.”

-- Helen Keller

“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.” 

-- Nhat Hanh