Black History Month events highlight many topics

Southeast Missouri State University has several events planned to celebrate Black History Month in February.

The headliner of the event will be the hip-hop artist Common, who has won multiple Grammy Awards and won a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award for best original song "Glory" for the film "Selma." He co-starred in that movie. He also launched an organization dedicated to the empowerment and development of America's urban youth.

Other scheduled events include:

• All Politics are Personal: From the Fiscal Cliff to Your Front Yard -- a guided discussion on political awareness; 5:30 p.m. Feb. 11, University Center Indian Room.
• Becoming an Expert/Excelling in Your Environment -- panel discussion on professionalism, understanding work environment and how success is defined; 12:30 p.m. Feb. 13, University Center Redhawks Room.
• What Plagues Our Youth Forum -- Students, faculty and staff will discuss challenges and issues affecting black teens; noon Feb. 17, University Center Redhawks Room.
• The Etiquette Advantage -- an interactive dining experience covering professional dress, etiquette and social skills; 5:30 p.m. Feb. 17, University Center Program Lounge.
• Sisters Are Doing It Themselves -- Kaye Monk-Morgan, a leadership consultant, will discuss black women in the workplace.
• Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Read-a-Thon -- volunteers will visit local schools and share multicultural literature with children.

As far as local black history, did you know that in recent years, a grassroots effort has been made to preserve a black cemetery in Cape Girardeau? Research has documented more than 240 burials dating from the 1880s through the 1970s at Shady Grove Cemetery, including Civil War veterans.

And at Fairmount Cemetery in Cape Girardeau, the stories of 15 black Americans who served in the armed forces emerges. Last Veterans Day an event was held to celebrate the lives of the men who served and died in wars long ago. As a Southeast Missourian story pointed out, some of the men spent cruel time during the chaos of the Civil War. It was explained that one soldier, John Gale, actually fought at one point on both sides of the war. At the age of 6, he and his father were sold, separating them from Gale's mother and siblings. At 12, his father was sold as well, leaving him alone. He never saw them again. Exposure during an extremely cold winter in 1864 crippled his right foot, and he never walked the same after that. Still, he did eventually marry and have children.

"It's good to see Cape Girardeau is finally coming of age about this history," said Mary Lacey at the event last fall. "It's really amazing to be able to hear these histories told in a positive way. To know that they weren't just slaves, but they were soldiers as well."

Indeed. Black History Month is a good time to remember the positive contributions so many black Americans have made in our region and beyond, and the many sacrifices and injustices that were endured during the time of slavery. There is still much room for improvement in race relations all across the country, but there is much to celebrate in how far we've come.