To give students, staff and Columbia residents a view of black culture and history, the Gaines/Oldham Black Culture Center is hosting Black Culture Awareness Week this week.
The theme of the 19th annual BCAW is “Back II Black.”
“The theme is taking a moment to reflect on where we’ve been as a culture, and where our culture emanates from,” BCC Director Nathan Stephens said. “It’s a little bit of reflection on history, black history specifically, and that’s shown through all of the events.”
The week began Sunday night with a soul food dinner held at the BCC. The Conservation Auditorium in the Anheuser-Busch Natural Resources Building hosted the musical exhibition Play the Part on Monday, in which MU students portrayed important African-American musicians.
Stephens expected Play the Part would be the most popular event, attendance-wise.
“We’ve held it in Conservation Hall the last two or three times we’ve done it, and it’s usually standing room only,” he said.
Junior Tiesha Gaten, who helped with the setup of Play the Part, expressed her excitement for the event.
“Each year it gets better and better, so I’m excited to see what’s going to happen, who’s going to perform and who’s going to win,” she said.
Lecturer Ashra Kwesi will give the presentation “African Origins of Civilization, Reclaiming the African Genius,” on Tuesday. According to his website, Kwesi has traveled extensively in Africa, focusing primarily on the Nile Valley.
Students put on “Man in the Mirror: Deception of Your Reflection,” a skit dealing with stereotypes on campus followed by a panel discussion Wednesday.
Stephens expressed hope that the panel discussion will prove useful for all who participate.
“Hopefully the tone is one of mutual respect and the willingness to open up and learn,” he said.
The presentation “Cotton Balls and Graffiti Walls: The History of Black Mizzou” will take place Thursday. Despite the negative tone of the title, Stephens said the tone of the presentation will be more optimistic.
“What I plan on showing is that one, we’ve made progress, and two, there’s also growth that we need to do from the very first African-American to even try to apply to get in to this institution to current times,” he said. “There’s still quite a way to go. Too many people on this campus, of all demographics, feel that we live in a post-racial society.”
The week will wrap up with a social hour at The Shack on Friday, with the St. Louis blues fusion group, Dirty Muggs, providing musical entertainment.
“I’m excited for the social hour because everyone’s just going to meet there to socialize, relax and talk to each other about everything that’s going on in campus,” junior Courtney Riley said.
Stephens said the week is part of the BCC’s mission.
“The mission of the Gaines/Oldham Black Culture Center is to disseminate information about the significant contributions of the African diaspora, and so this is just a fulfillment of our mission,” he said.
