Moving into February, we at The Chanticleer want to celebrate Black History Month by shining a spotlight on contributions from all throughout our campus community; whether they be from students, faculty and staff, athletes, artists, organizations, we want to represent Black history from all walks of life.

This week, we will be focusing on women of color, with our Graduate Assistant Annette Peagler featuring Women of Color and their experiences on page 10. Tiera Rivers, our art director, talks about her experience with microaggressions as a Black woman on page 18.

There are also some events coming up throughout the month that we would like to highlight. From Feb. 10-11, the theatre department will be presenting a dramatic reading of “Freedom Summer,” a play by Cynthia Robinson set during the Civil Rights Movement following the struggles of two sisters on their differing paths to freedom.

There is also Douglass Day on Feb. 14, which features an array of events from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. One of these includes a Transcription Jam event, where digital practitioners will be digitizing documents of Mary Ann Shadd Cary, an American-Canadian anti-slavery activist. To end off the day, there will be a performance of some of Fredrick Douglass’ speeches.

On Feb. 23, guest lecturer Lindsey Stewart will be presenting a lecture on Zora Neale Hurston’s essay “High John de Conquer” and discussing her impact on contemporary African American philosophy. Then, there’s the annual Gullah Geechee Community Day in Downtown Conway, which will be on Feb. 25. Information for 2023’s schedule will be coming soon according to gullahgeecheeday.com.

From The Chanticleer and beyond, we are excited to be celebrating Black History Month by showcasing a variety of voices, and we hope you will join us in celebrating throughout February and the rest of the year.