February is Black History Month, and Forsyth County Public Library begins a series of guest lectures and discussions in its ‘Celebrating African American Heritage’ program.
Here’s a rundown of the events:
Feb. 4: Dr. Gnimbin A. Ouattara, a Fulbright scholar and filmmaker from the Ivory Coast of West Africa and associate professor of history and international studies at Brenau University, will speak on the initial African reaction to the Transatlantic slave trade with a focus on Adahu, the first African slave mentioned by name in historical documents.
The program starts at 7 p.m. at the Post Road Library.
Feb. 9: Sarah Tanner, head of the Archives Research Center at the Atlanta University Robert W.Woodruff Library, will speak on “African Americans in Times of War.”
Following the presentation, Tanner will discuss how this history is represented in the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library’s Archives Research Center, how genealogists and other storytellers can access these materials, where to find digital resources and the importance of archival material in telling this story.
The program starts at 11 a.m. at the Sharon Forks Library.
Feb. 9: Dr. Jürgen E. Grandt of the University of North Georgia will present “Syncopated Switzerland: Hot Jazz in the Cold Alps.” Jazz music has been influenced by many international cultures. Dr. Grandt will explain how and why jazz music found its way to the heart of Alpine Europe and introduce listeners to the music of two Swiss musicians whose improvisations celebrate the origins of jazz and what it means to be a citizen of the world.
The program starts at 2 p.m. at the Cumming Library.
Feb. 23: Dr. Ian Afflerbach of the University of North Georgia will facilitate a book club-style discussion of “Recitatif,” a short story by one of the nation’s most distinguished African-American authors, Toni Morrison. Morrison has won the Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, and National Book Award for her novels, and yet during her 50-year career, she has only written one short story.
The discussion will start at 3 p.m. at the Hampton Park Library.