On Aug. 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered a speech that revolutionized the United States of America.

Dr. King’s “I Have a Dreamâ€Â speech and his ideas of equality would be immortalized in history. He is remembered every year in the month of February, in which he was born.

February is widely regarded as “Black History Month,â€Â but AAIS chose the title “African People’s History Month.â€Â

Dr. T. Hasan Johnson, committee chair of the department of Africana and American Indian Studies (AAIS), helped organize this month̢۪s events to educate students and members of the community.

Johnson’s reply to changing the name was, “I feel that the title is to expand the notion of blackness, not just North American, but also Caribbean and African blacks. We want to spread and expand what people associate with blackness tied with Caribbean/African culture. Our main goal is to expand the knowledge of the community.â€Â

And that is just what AAIS is doing this month. A month-long calendar of events has been made to better the knowledge of Black History Month.

This entire month, the AAIS department at Fresno State is hosting a series of events to celebrate “African People’s History Month.â€Â

When asked about the expected outcomes of these events, Johnson replied, “We’re just trying to pack the room and get the word out about black history. A lot of people have been well involved so far so we are excited. I think it is already successful.â€Â

According to Dr. Johnson, this is not the first year that AAIS has held events like these during Black History Month. “As I understand, it has been going on for a few years. Although this is my first year as AAIS chair, Francine Oputa, the director of the Women’s Resource Center, was the chair before me. She assisted a lot with this year’s lineup of activities prior to me taking the chair.â€Â

Columnist kicks off event

On Thursday, Feb. 6, Dr. Eugene Robinson, a columnist and associate editor for the Washington Post, visited the Satellite Student Union to give a lecture about the progression of and his personal experience with the American Civil Rights movement.

During his lecture he talked about the increase of immigration of people of African descent and the higher education they are receiving.

Harvard professors did a study of entry-level freshmen and saw that a bit more than half had African surnames. Therefore, African immigrants are the best educated group of immigrants in the United States, according to Robinson — better educated than Asian immigrants as a whole class and European immigrants as a whole class. Still, Robinson said, African immigrants are often underemployed.

A question-and-answer period took place after the lecture.

A concerned listener asked Robinson about a solution to underemployment and the 30 to 35 percent of African-Americans that are falling behind the middle class.

Robinson replied “There are so many people who are involved in mentoring programs, and excessive scholarship programs. I know so many other cultures are trying to do things like that and it is always valuable to work on an individual person-to-person level. Maybe that is the only solution, maybe there is something programmatically that we can do, but I confess I don’t know the answer. I just want to sound the alarm of what I see happening in detail.â€Â

Fresno State alumnus and current Philadelphia resident Harry Warrell explained his interest in the events that Fresno State hosts.

“I am one that likes to attend functions, especially during Black History Month… Whatever it may be — Black History Month or something during summer arts — I like to attend the functions at the university,â€Â Warrell said.

Freshman biology major and Fresno native Brian Burns also attended Robinson̢۪s lecture.

“I just wanted to see what Eugene Robinson was all about. I heard from my African studies class that he is a great writer for the Washington Post. I wanted to see where he comes from, how things have impacted his life to where he has got to today,â€Â Burns said.

Culture night, gospel, film history round out month

Burns mentioned that he would be part of the Africana Culture Night, which will take place tonight at the Satellite Student Union.

The doors for the event will open at 6 p.m.

Johnson explained that they were trying to advertise all the events and spread them equally.

Johnson said that notable upcoming events include a “Gospel Nightâ€Â on Feb. 22.

Johnson also mentioned he will be doing a film discussion on Feb. 26 about the film “The Spook Who Sat By the Door.â€Â

“It should be something that interests students, how it was made and how it suited the time period when it came out,â€Â said Johnson about the film.

“We want to introduce students to a wide range of forms of blackness,â€Â Johnson said.

Upcoming African People̢۪s History Month Events

The AAIS department has events planned throughout the remainder of February. Here are just a few of the upcoming events:

• Friday, Feb. 13 — Africana Culture Night
6 p.m. – 8:30 p.m., Satellite Student Union

• Tuesday, Feb. 17 — “An American Presidentâ€Â Lecture Series
5 p.m. – 6:30 p.m., UC 202

• Sunday, Feb. 22 — Gospel Night
6 p.m., Westside Church of God

• Thursday, Feb. 26 — “The Spook Who Sat by the Doorâ€Â Film & Discussion
5 p.m. – 8 p.m., EE 191

• Friday, Feb. 27 and Saturday, Feb. 28 — August Wilson’s “The Piano Lessonâ€Â
8 p.m., Speech Arts