Black History Month |

Black History Month Programming in Public Libraries

Black History Month (BHM)

We are approaching 100 years since the first Negro History Week/Black History Month. At the same time, we are at a crossroads as to what BHM programming should look like in the future. This project is a critical step in examining that future. We are able to study BHM in public libraries given the groundwork of our ancestors. We honor their vision and commitment to commemorating African American achievements. The Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA) is dedicated to determining how we can best carry on this great legacy. BCALA received a Planning Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to begin exploring the current state of Black History Month (BHM) programming offered at public libraries and identify significant gaps.

BHM and Public Libraries Timeline
1731 - 1993

Click the arrows to explore additional dates along the timeline.

1731

First Public Library

Benjamin Franklin and Junto Club members start the first public library in America, The
Library Company of Philadelphia.

1876

ALA Founded

The American Library Association was founded.

1905

First African American Public Library

Louisville Western Branch Library is built with funding from philanthropist Andrew Carnegie to serve the African American community. It is fully staffed by African Americans with Rev. Thomas Fountain Blue as the director.

1915

ASNLH Founded

The Association for the Study of Negro Life and History was founded (later renamed the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, ASALH).

1926

NHW Celebrated

Dr. Carter G. Woodson inaugurates Negro History Week.

1937

Negro History Bulletin

Dr. Woodson and Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune co-founded the Negro History Bulletin which highlighted annual BHM themes and contained lesson plans.

1944

PLA Founded

The Public Library Association was founded.

1963

Racism Documented

Access to Public Libraries Study funded by ALA documents racism in library services in the United States.

1964

Key Legislation

Enactment of the Library Services and Construction Act.

1966

Key Ruling

Brown v. Louisiana, 383 US 131, U.S. Supreme Court held that “persons could not be punished for using the library peacefully to protest the illegal segregation of the library itself.”

1970

BCALA Founded

The Black Caucus of the American Library Association is founded.

1976

NHW Expanded to BHM

ASALH begins Black History Month with an expansion and renaming of Negro History week.

1976

First African-American President of ALA

ALA elects its first African-American president; Clara Stanton Jones.

1993

Key Resource

Educational guide entitled Black History Month Resource Book by Mary Snodgrass was published.

Literature Review

The literature review on BHM programming in public libraries can be divided into three periods:

✓ The Early Years (1926 – the mid-1960s) A period of segregation in American libraries
✓ The Growth Years (the late 1960s – 1999) A period of growth for both BHM and libraries
✓ The 21st Century Outlook (the 2000s) A period of conversations & debate about BHM

Taxonomy

The Black History Month Taxonomy allows librarians to evaluate the kinds of BHM programming they conduct and see if there is too much reliance on one type of programming. For librarians not doing BHM programming, it will give them a quick idea of what is possible.

Key Findings

While there is a need to do Black History Month Programming given the demographic shifts occurring in the United States and the contributions African Americans have made to society, we were surprised to find from our preliminary research that 13% of the District/Library Systems and 22% of the branches do not conduct BHM programming. We also discovered other important information.