Calendar
Community Calendar
Friday, February 15th
Black Artstory Exhibition
Front and Center/Ed: A Black Artstory Putnam’s Lower Level, 419 Myrtle Ave., 7-10pm, FREE. The Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership presents an exhibition that takes an historic and whimsical gaze on Black Brooklyn Style. Curated by the Black Gotham Experience in connection with Black History Month and New York Fashion Week. Featured artists include: Ajamu Kojo, Sophia Dawson, Kwesi Abbensettes, Asha Hanna, Kamau Ware and others.
Saturday, February 16th
Black New York Wikipedia Editathon Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Blvd., Manhattan, 12-5pm, FREE. The Schomburg Center, in partnership with AfroCROWD, hosts our fifth year inviting the community to edit and contribute Black history and culture content on Wikipedia for the national Black WikiHistory Month outreach campaign. This year, we add notable Black New York figures and places whose content is incomplete or missing. Learn how Wikipedia works and how to add content, with access to the rich resources of the Schomburg and assistance from volunteer expert Wikipedians. Stay for the afternoon or drop in any time. Bring your own laptop, if possible. Laptops will also be available to check out with your NYPL library card on a first-come, first-served basis. Advanced Wiki-editing skills not required. Passion for Black history and culture is highly recommended! Important: If you’re new to Wikipedia, check out the Beginner’s Guide and create an account before Feb. 16th.
Monday, February 18th
Local 3 Electrician Apprenticeship Those interested in becoming licensed electricians are encouraged to contact IBEW Local Union #3 and ask for the Apprentice Department. Instruction includes 35 hours per week of well-paid, on-the-job training, classroom instruction in Electrical Theory and college courses leading towards an Associate of Science degree. Call 718-591-2000.
Tuesday, February 19th
Complexions Dance Company
Complexions Contemporary Ballet’s 25th Anniversary Season The Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Ave., Manhattan, 7:30 on this day, times vary thru 3/3. Tickets start at $10. Celebrating its 25th Anniversary season, this “matchless American dance company” (The Philadelphia Enquirer) returns with its distinctive brand of passion revealed in three dynamic programs, including the New York premiere of WOKE, set to a remix of music by Kendrick Lamar, Logic, Drake, Diplo and more. Also featured is the New York premiere of Bach 25 and audience favorite Star Dust, with music by David Bowie. Visit joyce.org for tickets.
Book Talk – Separate: The Story of Plessy vs. Ferguson and America’s Journey from Slavery to Segregation Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont St., 6:30-6pm, $5. Plessy v. Ferguson is the infamous legal case that upheld the racist notion of “separate but equal,” codified segregation and launched one of our country’s most depraved chapters. Longtime senior editor at The Washington Post, Steve Luxenberg, examines the social upheaval that gave rise to Plessy and looks at those who supported the ruling and championed its dissent.
Wednesday, February 20th
Brooklyn D.A.’s Office Summer H.S. Intern Applications High school sophomores, juniors and seniors can participate in a five-week paid internship open to students who live and/or attend school in Brooklyn. Learn about careers and responsibilities within the criminal justice system. The internship runs July 8 to August 9, with a $150 weekly stipend and MetroCard. To apply visit: http://apply.brooklynda.org and upload transcript, essay and resume. E-mail the recommendation letter separately as an attachment to: hsinternships@brooklynda.org with subject line: Recommendation Letter (Applicant’s First and Last Name). All materials must be received by 3/25. For assistance, contact the High School Internship and Youth Initiatives Program Coordinator at 718-250-4873.
Thursday, February 21st
Malcolm X
Revisiting Alex Haley’s Autobiography of Malcolm X Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Blvd., Manhattan, 6:30PM, FREE. Recently acquired manuscripts of The Autobiography of Malcolm X includes handwritten corrections and notes between Malcolm X and Alex Haley, and the full, unpublished chapter titled “The Negro.” Participants will discuss these revelatory materials and how they may further shape an understanding of Malcolm and the ongoing impact of The Autobiography. Joining the conversation are Zaheer Ali, Malcolm X scholar and oral historian at Brooklyn Historical Society; Simba Sana, former CEO and co-founder of Karibu Books; Dr. Vanessa K. Valdés, director of the City College of New York’s Black Studies Program; and Dr. R. L’Heureux Lewis-McCoy, Associate Professor in Sociology of Education at New York University. RSVP at Eventbrite.
Book-Signing – Brooklyn on My Mind: Black Visual Artists from the WPA to the Present Hudson Guild, 441 W. 26th St., Manhattan, 5-8pm, FREE. Join author and artist Dr. Myrah Brown Green as she talks about the process of creating her beautiful, powerful and critically important new coffee-table art book.
Friday, February 22nd
Info Session for Ingersoll Affordable Senior Housing Willoughby Neighborhood Senior Center, 105 North Portland Ave., 10am-12pm, FREE. This workshop will provide information about the application process for Ingersoll Senior Residences in Fort Greene, an LGBT-friendly development open to individuals 62 and older earning 60% of the Area Median Income. Learn more about eligibility requirements, when the application opens, how to prepare and what to expect. For further info call Assemblyman Walter T. Mosley’s office at 718-596-0100.
Saturday, February 23rd
The Business of Cannabis Emmanuel Baptist Church, 279 Lafayette Ave., 9:30am-4pm, FREE. Brooklyn will host its first-ever minisummit, bringing national, regional and local expert speakers from medical clinicians, grassroots health organizers to elected officials, attorneys and cannabis/hemp entrepreneurs together. Enjoy a day of panel discussions and workshop experiences addressing how to invest in and launch a cannabis/hemp business, laws governing the industry and the role of cannabis/hemp in self-care, community wellness and more. Seating is limited. Must RSVP at Eventbrite.
Sunday, February 24th
The EAST building mural
The EAST: The Origins and the Early Years International African Arts Festival Office, Restoration Plaza, 1360 Fulton St., Suite 401, Sugg. Min. donation, $10. On the occasion of its 50th Anniversary, this discussion will cover the history of The EAST, a cultural and educational center for people of African descent that thrived in Brooklyn from the late ‘60s through the 70s. Its dedicated members founded Uhuru Sasa Shule, one of the nation’s first independent Black schools as well as an entertainment venue presenting artists such as Betty Carter, Herbie Hancock, Pharaoh Sanders and many more. They also ran a bookstore, clothing store, food coop and grocery store, day care and published the famous Black News. Featured speakers will be Fela Barclift, Malika Iman, Job Mashariki, Maliki Oluwambe and Elise Shieba Ellerbb-Watson. The discussion will be moderated by Segun Shabaka. For information call 718-789-3264.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
Monday, February 25th
Beauty, Media, Money and More: A Conversation with Tressie McMillan Cottom Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont St., 6:30-8pm, $10. In her new book, Thick and Other Essays, Tressie McMillan Cottom, award-winning professor and acclaimed author of Lower Ed, embraces her venerated role as a purveyor of wit, wisdom and Black Twitter snark about all that is right and much that is wrong with this thing we call society. She is joined in conversation by Harlem-based writer Morgan Jerkins, author of the NYT best-seller, This Will Be My Undoing.
Wednesday, February 27th
What is Going On in NYCHA? The Fifth Ave. Committee, 621 Degraw St., 6-8pm, FREE. NYCHA has garnered news for a series of scandals from lack of heat and hot water to unreported lead paint, to failures in remediating mold in apartments. But how did we get there and how do we fight to ensure safe and healthy conditions for NYCHA residents across the city?
Elected officials and a coalition of community activists are demanding substantial funding to meet the needs of public housing communities before significant real estate development begins. Attend to learn more about these demands and how to get involved.
Turn the World Around: The Music and Legacy of Harry Belafonte Aaron Davis Hall, 129 Convent Ave., Manhattan, 7:30pm, $40. Celebrate the 92nd birthday of the iconic and beloved artist/activist with his band-mates. The Belafonte Alumni Group and other notables will present renditions of his best-known songs, as well as messages and personal anecdotes of life with the legendary entertainer. The concert will also be dedicated to the memories of Harold Lee Melvin, Belafonte’s personal assistant, and Daa’iya El Sanusi, treasured radio personality and Belafonte Alumni Group member. Both passed away in 2018. A reception, open to ticket-holders, will follow. For tickets call 212-650-6900.
