Celebrate Black History Month!

The Blackman Voice is compiling a selection of works representing contributions to African American history. Musicians, artwork, films, and books as well as historical figures will all be featured in this gallery.

In his most famous speech, Martin Luther King, Jr., stated, “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter,” (“I Have a Dream” speech, 1963). King did not advocate violence. He advocated peace and working together to overcome adversity. He did not advocate silence. He advocated education.

“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education,” (The Purpose of Education”  Morehouse College student newspaper, The Maroon Tiger, 1947).

Education teaches us that only by acknowledging our past can we improve our future.

King perhaps said it best when he stated, “The time is always right to do what is right” (Oberlin College Commencement speech, 1965).

We hope you will be inspired to do what is right by our selections, and perhaps find a new favorite artist or film in the process.

Gallery • 9 Photos

Selma (2014) is about the Civil Rights Movement in Alabama, when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) and many others marched from Selma to Montgomery Alabama, in order to get the attention of President Lyndon B. Johnson, who ended up signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The movie won many awards, including the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Motion Picture, NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture, BET Award for Best Movie, and Academy award for Best Picture. Picture Credit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1020072/mediaviewer/rm2542864640