For the past seven years, students in Honors African American Literature have illuminated Black History Month through their Portrait of a People video series. This year, students focus on exploring the profound legacy of nonviolent resistance during the Civil Rights Movement, drawing inspiration from leaders who confronted injustice with courage, dignity, and strategic peaceful action.
As English Instructor BK Smith explains, "What my ancestors endured in life and more recently during the Civil Rights Movement has taught me a great deal—that ignorance, allied with power, is the most ferocious enemy justice can have." The student-created documentaries invite our community to witness the power of principled resistance, reminding us that our shared humanity transcends the ignorance that seeks to divide us.
Each video is a testament to the enduring spirit of those who fought, and continue to fight, for justice, embodying the hope that our actions can meaningfully advance social understanding and equality. You can find each student’s project below. Links will be added as the videos continue to air throughout the month of February. Happy Black History Month!
2025 Projects
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Previous Year's Posts
2024 Projects
- Octavia Butler
- Kiley Reid
- The Lady Chablis
- Sojourner Truth
- Jesmyn Ward
- Imbolo Mbue
- Jessie Redmon Fauset
- bell hooks
- Elaine Brown
- Jacqueline Woodson
- Angela Davis
- Isabel Wilkerson
- Toni Morrison
- Terry McMillan
- Zora Neale Hurston
- Audre Lorde
- Alice Walker
2023 Projects
- Brittany Packnett Cunningham
- Constance Baker Motley
- Barbara Jordan
- Ida B. Wells
- Nina Simone
- Huey P. Newton
- Septima Poinsette Clarke
- James Weldon Johnson
- Ruby Bridges
- Jackie Robinson
- Melba Pattillo Beals
- W. E. B. Du Bois
- Justice Thurgood Marshall
- Fred Hampton
- Amelia Boynton Robinson
- Carter G. Woodson
- John Carlos
- Terrence Roberts
2022 projects
- Sidney Poitier
- Alicia Garza
- Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw
- Dr. Mae Jamison
- Angie Thomas
- Ursula M. Burns
- Amanda Gorman
- Angela Bassett
- Allyson Felix
- Kendrick Lamar
- Debbie Allen
- Joycelyn Elders
2021 projects
- Etta James
- Aretha Franklin
- Louis Armstrong
- Jean-Michel Basquiat
- Claudette Colvin
- J. Cole
- Josephine Baker
- Oris 'Dino' Smiley
- Mae Jemison
- Stacey Abrams
2020 projects
- Wilma Rudolph
- Elaine Welteroth
- George Washington Carver
- Lorraine Hansberry
- Misty Copeland
- Viola Davis
- Nat King Cole
- Harriet Ann Jacobs
- Sheryl Swoopes
- Octavia Spencer
- Ava DuVernay
- Tiger Woods
- Alvin Ailey
- Nina Simone
- Octavia Bulter
- Matthew Henson
- Ella Fitzgerald
2019 projects
- Marian Anderson
- Madame CJ Walker
- Audra Lorde
- Quincy Jones
- Fannie Lou Hamer
- Eartha Kitt
- WEB Dubois
- Muhammed Ali
- Shirley Chisolm
- Alexander Crummel