SUMMER 2017
Schomburg Center for research in black culture The New York Public Library
WELCOME TO THE
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
WHERE EVERY MONTH IS BLACK HISTORY MONTH
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, located in Harlem, New York, is a research unit of The New York Public Library system. It is recognized as one of the leading institutions focusing exclusively on African-American, African Diaspora, and African experiences. Starting with the collection of Arturo Alfonso Schomburg more than 90 years ago, the Schomburg collects, preserves, and provides access to materials documenting black life locally, nationally and internationally. Recognized for its prominence in digital humanities, scholarly research, and vast collection spanning over 10 million items, the Schomburg Center won the National Medal for Museum and Library Service in 2015. Today, the Schomburg serves as a space that encourages lifelong education and exploration with diverse programs that illuminate the richness of black history and culture, and in 2017 it was named a National Historic Landmark.
SCHOMBURGCENTER.ORG
SUMMER 2017
TABLE OF CONTENTS PUBLIC PROGRAMS 4
FIRST FRIDAYS
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THEATER TALKS
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LIVE FROM THE ARCHIVE
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THE LAPIDUS CENTER PRESENTS
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TALKS AT THE SCHOMBURG
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BETWEEN THE LINES
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FILMS AT THE SCHOMBURG
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BEFORE FIVE
PLAN YOUR VISIT
EDUCATION AT THE SCHOMBURG 10
CONVERSATIONS IN BLACK
FREEDOM STUDIES
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JUNIOR SCHOLARS YOUTH SUMMIT
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BLACK HISTORY 360°
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TEEN CURATORS EXHIBITION
EXHIBITIONS & RELATED PROGRAMS 12
BLACK POWER!
CALENDAR OF EVENTS 13 CALENDAR SUPPORT 14
SPECIAL EVENTS
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Schomburg Center for research in black culture The New York Public Library
The calendar listings featured in this brochure are highlights from our full program schedule. For the most complete and up-to-date program information, please visit schomburgcenter.org/calendar.
To register for our FREE events, please visit: schomburgcenter.eventbrite.com Please note that our Main Exhibition Hall is now open (with Black Power! on view). Due to ongoing renovations, the Schomburg Shop has moved to the front of the building, and Power in Print, the second part of our Black Power 50 exhibition, is expected to open in the Latimer/Edison Gallery later this summer. Subscribe to our e-newsletter: nypl.org/schomburgnews CONNECT with the Schomburg:
Take 2 or 3 train to 135th St 515 Malcolm X Boulevard New York, New York 10037-1801
Books for most our talks can be purchased through the Schomburg Shop, located to the left of the main entrance on the first floor.
FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
We’re cranking up the temps at the Schomburg Center for this season’s monthly social MAY 5 AT 6:00 PM
gathering series,
Bad Boy Records Edition
First Fridays!
JUNE 2 AT 6:00 PM
Gay Pride Edition AUGUST 4 AT 6:00 PM
House Music Edition
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FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
Theater MONDAY, MAY 1 AT 6:30 PM
Sweat by Lynn Nottage Sweat is a critically acclaimed new play from Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Lynn Nottage. Set in the rust-belt town of Reading, Pennsylvania, the narrative explores the chasm created by job loss that leads to racial unease and a breakdown in community. Join us for an evening of theater talk with Nottage. Lynn Nottage is a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and screenwriter, whose plays have been produced widely in the United States and throughout the world. Sweat, which won this year’s Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, moved to Broadway after a sold out run at The Public Theater. Nottage is also the recipient of a PEN/Laura Pels Master Playwright Award, Literature Award from the Academy of Arts and Letters, MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellowship, and the National Black Theatre Fest’s August Wilson Playwriting Award, to name a few. She serves as an Associate Professor in the Theatre Department at Columbia School of the Arts.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 10 AT 6:30 PM
Derrick Adams and the Patrick Kelly Effect
The Schomburg Center and the Studio Museum in Harlem’s inHarlem initiative proudly present the summer 2017 kickoff of our Live From the Archive series, which features conversations between scholars, artists, community activists, and staff members of our Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division whose work is at the intersection of the archive. 2016 Joyce Alexander Wein Artist Prize-winning multidisciplinary artist Derrick Adams will join us to talk about his eagerly anticipated new work inspired by black fashion pioneer Patrick Kelly. 5
FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
MONDAY, MAY 15 AT 7:00 PM
Carnegie Hall Neighborhood Concert: Somi
the
East African singer-songwriter Somi appears at the Schomburg with her blend of jazz and R&B. Somi has been praised for her “serious and seductive vocals” (New York Times), and her 2014 album, The Lagos Music Salon, which catapulted to the number one spot on Billboard’s jazz chart. She has performed with a wide range of artists—including Mos Def, John Legend, and Jennifer Hudson—and is a dedicated activist and founder of the nonprofit organization New Africa Live.
LAPIDUS CENTER All programs are brought to you by the Lapidus Center for the Historical Analysis of Transatlantic Slavery.
PRESENTS
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14 AT 6:30 PM
Black Music Month in Argentina and Uruguay with Tango Negro: The African Roots of Tango In celebration of Black Music Month, the Lapidus Center for the Historical Analysis of Transatlantic Slavery will present the documentary Tango Negro: The African Roots of Tango. Directed by Angolan filmmaker Dom Pedro, the beautiful film explores the African roots of tango in Argentina and Uruguay. The screening will be followed by a conversation with Alex Borucki, author of From Shipmates to Soldiers: Emerging Black Identities in the Rio de la Plata. A finalist for the Harriet Tubman Prize, From Shipmates to Soldiers is an in-depth exploration of the lives and cultures of Africans and their descendants in Argentina and Uruguay who, regrouped in African “nations,” organized African-based celebrations and developed their own cultures, music, and dances.
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FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
THURSDAY, JUNE 8 AT 6:30 PM
Black LGBT Health in the United States Black LGBT Health in the United States: The Intersection of Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation, edited by Lourdes Dolores Follins, PhD, LCSW and Jonathan Mathias Lassiter, PhD, focuses on the mental, physical, and spiritual aspects of health, and considers both risk and resiliency factors for the black LGBT population. Join us for a conversation as we reflect on the findings from the book and the influence politics and culture can have on black LGBT health. This program is presented in partnership with Emil Wilbekin, Founder of Native Son.
TUESDAY, JUNE 27 AT 6:30 PM
ZINES: Elaborate Disruption and Black Creativity The resurgence of zines—self-published limited-distribution works—is stemming the tide of erasure, disrupting publishing, and offering creative spaces for diverse voices within marginalized communities. Remembering zines like FIRE!!, created in 1926 and “devoted to the young negro artist,” Steven G. Fullwood, Associate Curator of our Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books division, will join in conversation with contemporary zine creators Devin N. Morris (3 Dot Zine), Nontsikelelo Mutiti (Nontsi), Kevin Harry (KHzines), and Jermel Moody (maple:koyo) to elaborate on their zinemaking practices and impact on publishing and creativity. The program will also feature a marketplace of zines selected in collaboration with Morris, Moody, and the Schomburg Shop.
SCHOMBURGCENTER.ORG 7
FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
TUESDAY, MAY 23 AT 6:30 PM
The Wide Circumference of Love by Marita Golden Marita Golden is an acclaimed, award-winning author of more than a dozen works of fiction and nonfiction. In The Wide Circumference of Love, Golden explores the unsettling effects of Alzheimer’s disease on an African-American family caring for their ailing patriarch while navigating an uncertain future. Golden will join us in a conversation that will be followed by a book signing. TUESDAY, JUNE 6 AT 6:30 PM
Stamped From the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi Historian Ibram X. Kendi and Dr. Khalil Gibran Muhammad, author of The Condemnation of Blackness, discuss Kendi’s latest book, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America. A book signing will follow.
MONDAY, JUNE 12 AT 6:30 PM
Amiable with Big Teeth by Claude McKay: A Roundtable Discussion The unexpected discovery in 2009 of a completed typescript of Claude McKay’s final novel was celebrated as one of the most significant literary events in recent years. Building on the already extraordinary legacy of McKay’s life and work, Amiable with Big Teeth centers on the efforts by Harlem intelligentsia to organize support for the liberation of fascist-controlled Ethiopia, a crucial but largely forgotten event in American history. Coeditors Brent Hayes Edwards and JeanChristophe Cloutier will be joined by a panel of scholars and writers to discuss the significance of Amiable with Big Teeth for our understanding of McKay’s career, black internationalism, and Popular Front politics. THURSDAY, JUNE 22 AT 6:30 PM
Through the Eyes of Rebel Women by Iris Morales Iris Morales returns with a collection of essays exploring the rise and decline of the Young Lords Party through the experiences of its women members between 1969 and 1976. She builds upon personal interviews, primary sources, and photographs to craft—for the first time—a book chronicling women who shaped the revolutionary stance of the organization and fought for women’s equality alongside the quest for society’s advancement. 8
FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
FRIDAY, JULY 7 AT 6:30 PM
25th Anniversary Screening of Juice Released in 1992, the hip hop-fueled drama Juice stars Omar Epps and presents the acting debut of Tupac Shakur, alongside Jermaine “Huggy” Hopkins, Khalil Kain, and Samuel L. Jackson. Join us for a screening of this 90s classic and talkback with the film’s director, Ernest Dickerson, and surprise guests on the 25th anniversary of the film. Following the film will be a 90s music-themed after party.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 17 AT 2:00 PM
American Masters - Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise This is the first feature documentary about the incomparable Dr. Maya Angelou (1928–2014), best known for her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Dr. Angelou lived a prolific life as a singer, dancer, activist, poet, and writer, and inspired generations with lyrical modern African-American thought that pushed boundaries. This unprecedented film weaves her words with rare and intimate archival photographs and videos, which paint hidden moments of her exuberant life during some of America’s most defining moments. 9
EDUCATION AT THE SCHOMBURG
THURSDAY, MAY 4 AT 6:00 PM
The Long Fight against New York’s Police Brutality What are the politics of police brutality in New York City and what leaders and movements have attempted to stop it? Why don’t police review boards stop police brutality? Clarence Taylor, Cathy Schneider, Michael Flamm and Christopher Hayes discuss the latest research on the explosive issues that propelled the 1964 Harlem and Brooklyn uprisings and fuel urban unrest today. For more information: Website: www.blackfreedomstudies.org Email: schomburged@nypl.org Phone: (212) 491-2272 Twitter: @SchomburgCenter, @SchomburgCBFS
SATURDAY, MAY 13 AT 10:00 AM
15th Annual Junior Scholars Youth Summit The Schomburg Junior Scholars present a multimedia event that reflects their yearlong study of black history and culture. Enjoy a daylong program filled with youth-led projects in theater, spoken word, video production, media, visual arts, photography, and comic book art.
RSVP via schomburgcenter.eventbrite.com To learn more about the Junior Scholars Program, visit schomburgcenter.org/juniorscholars. 10
EDUCATION AT THE SCHOMBURG
FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
JULY 17-21 | 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
BLACK HISTORY 360°: The Schomburg’s Summer Education Institute
Professional Development for K-12 grade teachers, community educators, college faculty, and college students Join K-12 grade educators and premier scholars from across the country for a spectacular “education vacation” at the Schomburg Center, featuring lectures, interactive workshops, curriculum labs, curator talks and community walks that explore the history and cultures of African Americans and African peoples throughout the Diaspora. Educators will gain valuable content knowledge and learn inquiry-based approaches to teaching across the grades using the Schomburg’s rich primary resource collections on site and online. This year’s themes include: Afro-Latinx history and culture; Black New Yorkers; Teaching James Baldwin; Race and Mass Incarceration; Teaching with Archives – A Primer; Black Speculative Fiction; Exhibitions: Black Power! and Power in Print: Posters of the Black Power Movement; and more.
REGISTRATION DEADLINE:
JULY 7, 2017
REGISTER ONLINE:
SCHOMBURGCENTER.ORG/ BLACKHISTORY360
For more information: Website: www.schomburgcenter.org/blackhistory360 Email: schomburged@nypl.org Phone: (212) 491-2272 Facebook: facebook.com/schomburgeducation #blackhistory360
REGISTRATION FEES:
GENERAL - $500/WEEK OR $125/DAY COLLEGE STUDENTS & SENIORS - $400/WEEK OR $100/DAY
THURSDAY, JUNE 15 AT 6:00 PM
Teen Curators 2017 Exhibition Schomburg Education invites you to attend the Teen Curators Program’s 2017 Exhibition featuring works from the Schomburg’s Bob Blackburn Printmaking Workshop Collection and art from the teens themselves. The Schomburg Teen Curators Program is generously funded by The Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation.
RSVP via schomburgcenter.eventbrite.com To learn more about the Teen Curators Program, visit schomburgcenter.org/teencurators. 11
EXHIBITIONS AND RELATED PROGRAMS
#BLACKPOWER50
F R E E PUBLIC
Black Power! is now on view! The eagerly anticipated exhibit, which approaches the concept of Black Power introduced by Stokely Carmichael and fellow Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee worker, Willie Ricks, in 1966, through its organizations, political prisoners, coalitions, education, style, popular culture, the Black Arts Movement, publications, and global impact, comes at a time that holds a particular relevance. And our onsite audience, totaling hundreds of people walking through our doors each day, have only reaffirmed its need.
The exhibition is complemented by our brand new interactive Media Gallery, which, in addition to currently providing access to select online exhibitions, Google Earth trails through our collections, and the Schomburg Center’s historic timeline, features clips from Blaxploitation films birthed at the height of the Black Power movement. Black Power!, which made waves on social media and garnered both local and national press, presents hundreds of photographs, documents, as well as video and audio material that explore, conceptualize, and interpret a movement that continues to shape black consciousness and inform the contemporary American landscape.
SATURDAY, MAY 20 AT 11:00 AM AND SATURDAY, JUNE 10 AT 11:00 AM
BLACK POWER 50 MULTIMEDIA HARLEM WALKING TOUR Showcasing Harlem sites associated with the Black Power and Civil Rights movements beginning in the 1960s through present day, this tour is an educational and entertaining field experience to complement our Black Power! exhibition, which explores the Black Power movement.
For more information, visit nypl.org/events/exhibitions/black-power 12
CALENDAR LISTINGS
FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
CALENDAR OF EVENTS MONDAY, MAY 1 AT 6:30 PM
THURSDAY, JUNE 8 AT 6:30 PM
Theater Talks: Sweat by Lynn Nottage
Talks at the Schomburg: Black LGBT Health in the United States
THURSDAY, MAY 4 AT 6:00 PM
Conversations in Black Freedom Studies: The Long Fight Against New York’s Police Brutality
SATURDAY, JUNE 10 AT 11:00 AM
FRIDAY, MAY 5 AT 6:00 PM
MONDAY, JUNE 12 AT 6:30 PM
Black Power 50: Multimedia Harlem Walking Tour
First Fridays: Bad Boys Record Edition
Between the Lines: Amiable with Big Teeth by Claude McKay: A Roundtable Discussion
WEDNESDAY, MAY 10 AT 6:30 PM
Live from the Archive: Derrick Adams and the Patrick Kelly Effect
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14 AT 6:30 PM
Lapidus Center Presents: Black Music Month in Argentina and Uruguay with Tango Negro: The African Roots of Tango
SATURDAY, MAY 13 AT 10:00 AM
15th Annual Junior Youth Scholars Summit
THURSDAY, JUNE 15 AT 6:00 PM
MONDAY, MAY 15 AT 7:00 PM
Teen Curators 2017 Exhibition
Carnegie Hall Neighborhood Concert: Somi
THURSDAY, JUNE 22 AT 6:30 PM
WEDNESDAY, MAY 17 AT 2:00 PM
Between the Lines: Through the Eyes of Rebel Women by Iris Morales
Before Five: American Masters - Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise
TUESDAY, JUNE 27 AT 6:30 PM
FRIDAY, MAY 19 AT 6:00 PM
Talks at the Schomburg: Zines: Elaborate Disruption and Black Creativity
Annual Commemoration of the Birth of el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz (Malcolm X)
FRIDAY, JULY 7 AT 6:30 PM
SATURDAY, MAY 20 AT 11:00 AM
Films at the Schomburg: 25th Anniversary Screening of Juice
Black Power 50: Multimedia Harlem Walking Tour TUESDAY, MAY 23 AT 6:30 PM
JULY 17-21, 9:00 AM TO 4:00 PM
Between the Lines: The Wide Circumference of Love by Marita Golden
Black History 360°: The Schomburg Center’s Summer Education Institute
FRIDAY, JUNE 2 AT 6:00 PM
FRIDAY, AUGUST 4 AT 6:00 PM
First Fridays: Gay Pride Edition
First Fridays: House Music Edition
TUESDAY, JUNE 6 AT 6:30 PM
Between the Lines: Stamped from the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi
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EVENTS AT THE SCHOMBURG
ARE YOU LOOKING for the PERFECT VENUE to HOST YOUR NEXT EVENT?
The Schomburg Center offers four magnificent spaces that can house anywhere from 75 to 321 guests. Whether it’s an intimate gathering or a lavish extravaganza, we have a space to meet your needs. While you and your guests are enjoying the fabulous and historic setting, you will know that you are helping support the collections, services, and programs of the Schomburg Center. For more information about hosting your special event at the Schomburg, please contact schomburgcenterevents@nypl.org.
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SUPPORT THE SCHOMBURG
FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMS
SUPPORT THE SCHOMBURG Become a Schomburg Society Member Today!
Support the Schomburg while enjoying exclusive memeber benefits: • Invitations to private events • Member Newsletter • 20% discount at the Schomburg Shop • ...AND MUCH MORE FOR MORE INFORMATION: VISIT SCHOMBURGCENTER.ORG/JOINTODAY OR CALL 212.491.2252
Volunteer at The Schomburg! CONTACT:
212.491.2265 SCHOMBURGVOLUNTEERS@NYPL.ORG TO APPLY:
NYPL.ORG/SCHOMBURG-VOLUNTEER-APPLICATION
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Schomburg Center for research in black culture The New York Public Library
515 MALCOLM X BOULEVARD | NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10037-1801
Schomburgcenter.org
Don’t Forget to Register: All public programs are FREE unless noted otherwise. Registration is required: schomburgcenter.eventbrite.com All registered seats are released 30 minutes before start time, so we recommend that you arrive early. First come, first seated. For school programs, please email schomburgEd@nypl.org.