Taking Up Space With Dr. B!
Black History Month originally called Negro History Week established in 1926 by Dr. Carter G. Woodson, founder of Association for the Study of African American Life and History, was created as a way not to limit celebration of the Black experience to a week/month, but to educate and show the rest of the nation how the Black community was excelling and contributed to the strength of the country. The month of February was selected because it was the birth month of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass.
As a member of an Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, a historically Black fraternity founded in 1911 at Howard University, he worked with his fraternity members early on to help promote the Black community's achievements during his early years with the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. Woodson understood the importance of his fraternity not only promoting and supporting that Black community, but that they were important to educating and enlightening non Black people about the lack community’s past, present, and future.
Every year there is a theme for Black History Month and this year’s theme is Black Health and Wellness #BlackHealthMatters. We often view health and wellness as taking care of our physical selves, but for Black people being in community contributes significantly to our health, wellness, and overall well being. The National Museum of African American History and Culture (2022,February) discusses the importance of community:
When we intentionally create a community for the purpose of a shared goal, it can deepen relationships, create feelings of belonging, and provide support for the health and wellbeing of all members. Community is a gateway to better understand our own lives and the lives of others and creates an essential foundation for people working toward common goals.
One of the ways traditionally that Black individuals have created community for ourselves is by becoming members of historically Black fraternities and Sororities. These nine organizations (often referred to as the Divine NIne) were founded during a time when Blacks were not allowed to join similar social organizations on college campuses. The organizations all members of the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC):
- Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, founded at Cornell University in 1906
- Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, founded at Howard University in 1908
- Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, founded at Indiana University in 1911
- Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, founded at Howard University in 1911
- Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, founded at Howard University in 1913
- Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, founded at Howard University in 1914
- Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, founded at Howard University in 1920
- Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, founded at Butler University in 1922
- Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, founded at Morgan State University in 1963.
They provide a lifetime of support and extended family for their members. Membership does not end when one graduates from college and individuals are able to become members after the complete their undergraduate education. They foster development, contribute to college student retention, create leaders, and contribute to the positive growth of the Black community. As a third generation member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, I fondly think about my childhood surrounded by members of Divine Nine, the instant community I have found as I have relocated for different professional experiences, the sisterhood that is developed anytime I meet a new Soror and how all of these experiences have contributed to the person that I am today.
This month ODEI’s Good Trouble Video Series features some of SJSU’s Black Faculty and Staff who are members of the Divine Nine. Dr. Travis Boyce and Henderson Hill III both members of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Felicia McKee-Fegans a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, and Coleetta McElroy a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. We hope that you enjoy hearing about their experiences and what their organizations mean to them.
To close, though February Black History Month we hope that you remember that Black history, Black joy, and Black excellence can not be confined to 28 days a year.
References
Black History Themes (2022, February). The Association for the Study of African American Life and History. Retrieved February, 2022, from https://asalh.org/black-history-themes/
Community Building. (2022, February). National Museum of African American History and Culture. Retrieved February, 2022, from https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race/topics/community-building
National Pan-Hellenic Council https://nphchq.com/millennium1/
