February is a time where Black history is honored and represented all over the United States. People from all walks of life continue to honor the titans that fought for equality during Black History Month.
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Dr. A.K. Sterling during his speech last Thursday.
As part of Highline’s celebration and recognition of Black History Month, this past Thursday the college hosted renowned speaker and academic Dr. A.K. Sterling. Dr. Sterling visited the Umoja Village in Building 25 and gave a presentation about his story and how it connects with the overall theme of how we can continue to shape history.
Dr. Sterling is a well known and respected educator, writer, speaker, and consultant who has spoken about the importance of learning about and understanding Black history. He has spoken at numerous events all over the country, and through a black feminist lens he dissects and explains history in a way that people understand.
When asked about how we define Black history he said, “That’s for us to figure out, we’ve been told how to do it for so long, and that way doesn’t tell us how we see ourselves defining Black history.”
He also believes in the power of how we shape our own narratives when it comes to learning about Black history and redefining the way we see ourselves in society versus just looking up to legendary people.
“When we actually look up to people who have defined history, it doesn’t allow us to expand and see ourselves in Black history. Once we expand on how we see Blackness in ourselves, we can use that to help root out anti-Blackness in our society,” said Dr. Sterling.
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Dr. Sterling’s presentation was the culmination of a number of events hosted by the college as part of the Martin Luther King Jr. series, organized by the Center for Cultural and Inclusive Excellence (CCIE).
In the past, CCIE has hosted Martin Luther King Jr. related events in a week-based format instead of a series-based format. This was the first time that CCIE has organized Martin Luther King Jr. into a series of events instead of a full week in order to expand the number of events.
“CCIE has decided to try a new approach to programming by shifting to a series-based model versus week-based model to try a new format and catering to different schedules/classes and availability of both our Highline community and guest speakers,” said Edwina Fui, director of CCIE who also chaired the planning committee for this year’s Martin Luther King Jr. series.
“One of our pillars is sustainable excellence and we want to practice having more time in between programs to process our learning and shared experiences before engaging in the next conversation. We will see how feedback is from our community before moving forward with future CCIE events,” said Fui.
The month of February is a reminder for everyone that although there is progress in terms of recognizing, honoring, and celebrating Black history, there is a long way to go regarding how we carry the message of remembering the people that got us to this point.
Dr. Sterling’s message of continuing to see Blackness in all of us should be heeded so we can dismantle anti-Blackness in society today.