Lethbridge’s post-secondaries celebrating Black History Month

Donaldson stated, “Lethbridge College is part of a diverse, supportive and inclusive community. Our role as a post-secondary institution is to ensure we create a safe environment where everyone feels welcome. That’s why it’s so important that we recognize and celebrate Black History Month.”

Thursday will also see the first of two Cultural Attire Days planned for the month. Students and staff are encouraged to wear clothing or items that represent their culture. A second Cultural Attire Day, and a lunch-and-learn session will be on February 28.

The college will have Black History Month meal kits supplied by the Lethbridge College Students’ Association. Students can register for a free kit. They include a recipe card and all ingredients needed (minus a protein) to make pilau, which is a traditional rice dish popular along the Swahili Coast.

Additionally, the food court at the post-secondary will be offering meals inspired by the month, with dishes including black bean soup, sausage gumbo, jollof rice, jerk chicken and peri peri chicken.

Other activities will be Black History Month Jeopardy, as well as information booths in Centre Core.

New events include a movie night collaboration with the Lethbridge Public Library and Chinook High School, as well as free Afro-fusion dance classes. Those will be open to college students, employees and the community.

Lethbridge College has been holding events for Black History Month since 2017, under the guidance of Dr. Ibrahim Turay, Distance Learning chair and instructor in the Centre for Justice and Human Services.

Turay said, “In the past decade, the Lethbridge College study body has included individuals from approximately 44 African and Caribbean countries.”

“This academic year, students from Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Jamaica and Congo account for about five per cent of the entire student population, and that doesn’t include students with African ancestry who were born in Canada, the U.S. or other parts of the world.”

A full schedule of events is at the Lethbridge College website.

UNIVERSITY OF LETHBRIDGE

The University of Lethbridge (U of L) will kick-off Black History Month on Thursday under the theme ‘Black Joy: The Telling of Our Stories’.

The launch will feature a cultural performance from the ULethbridge Black Students’ Association.

It will include a presentation from Faculty of Fine Arts alumnus Stephen Onyango, a cinematographer and creative director of Legend Productions in southern Alberta.

The Equity, Diversity and Inclusion team will provide updates on current and upcoming projects.

The U of L’s Black History Month launch is at 9 a.m. in the Science Commons Atrium. Other events to celebrate the month include a webinar and book discussion.

A list of initiatives is at the U of L website.

READ MORE: Lethbridge News Now.

—

If you have a news tip, question or concern, please email Lethbridge.newsroom@Pattisonmedia.com.

by Justin Goulet

Lethbridge’s post-secondaries celebrating Black History Month

What's Happening