February is Black History Month in the United States!

In 1926 Dr. Carter Woodson instituted a week-long celebration of the contributions of African Americans to history. Since then the celebration has extended until it encompassed an entire month, and it is recognized on both a scholarly and commercial level. This year’s theme is “At the Crossroads of Freedom and Equality: The Emancipation Proclamation and the March on Washington.” Over the course of the month the actions and works of African Americans are recognized by the media, including a multitude of television specials, as well as by organizations promoting African American equality. For more information visit http://asalh.net/index.html.

February 1, Friday

Thomas Lantos (1928-2008): Jewish American

Born in Budapest, Lantos was part of the Nazi resistance during the German occupation of Hungary in World War II. After being placed in a forced labor camp as a teenager, he escaped to a safe house run by Swede Raoul Wallenberg. Then in 1947 Lantos immigrated to the United States on an academic scholarship to attend the University of Washington and Berkeley. From 1981 until his death in 2008, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives as a representative from California’s 12th District. Lantos championed human rights worldwide, promoted religious freedom for Saudi Arabia, advocated Tibetans’ rights to religious and cultural freedom, and protested against the genocide in Darfur.

February 4, Monday

Betty Friedan (1921-2006): Jewish American

Friedan is known as a forerunner of the modern feminist movement. Her book, The Feminine Mystique, published in 1963, helped bring about the “Second Wave” of feminism and was one of the most influential books of the twentieth century. Her work was a leading force of the women’s liberation movement of the 1960s, a social upheaval redolent of turn-of-the-century suffrage campaigns. Friedan was a founder of the National Organization for Women (NOW) in 1966, and was president of the organization until 1970. She also founded the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws (NARAL), and was a co-founder of the National Women’s Political Caucus (NWPC) which aspired to increase the participation of women in the political process.

February 6, Wednesday

Bob Marley (1945-1981): Jamaican

Bob Marley was the most influential singer of reggae, a form of music drawing from Afro-Caribbean dance and American soul music. It was one of the first musical styles from the Third World to become popular in the United States and Europe. The intense presence and message of Marley’s songs brought him international audiences, influential singers and songwriters from throughout Europe, the Western Hemisphere, and Africa.

February 10, Sunday

New Year (Gao Nian): China

The start of a three-day celebration of the Chinese New Year, these revelries mark the beginning of the year 4711, the year of the Snake. On the first day of the new year all business accounts are settled and grudges forgotten. The Chinese eat jiao zi (pork dumplings), meaning “the end and beginning of time,” as well as noodles to represent long life. Some of the celebration activities include hiding a coin in a dumpling for luck, children receiving money in red envelopes, fireworks, a dragon dance, and prayers for blessings in the new year. Due to the recognition of the Gregorian calendar and its New Year being January 1st, these festivities are now called the “Spring Festival” in the People’s Republic of China.

February 13, Wednesday

Ash Wednesday (beginning of Lent): Christian

This day is the beginning of a 40-day period of prayer and fasting for Christians. Preceding Easter Sunday, it’s observed in memory of the 40 days of fasting Jesus endured in the desert. Over the years, the strict fasting requirements have relaxed in the Western Church, while many Protestants and Roman Catholics choose to give up a certain food or activity during Lent. The meaning of the Ash in the holiday is in reference to the significant uses of ashes, such as a priest drawing a cross on one’s forehead in preparation for the fast. It also refers to the renewal of life which occurs on Easter.

February 15, Friday

Susan Brownell Anthony (1820-1906): Suffragist, United States

More commonly known as Susan B. Anthony, this Quaker, teacher, and abolitionist is well known for her involvement as a women’s rights activist. Anthony was a leader of the movement for women’s right to vote. She led the Women’s Temperance Movement alongside Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and in New York helped to secure the first laws which gave women control over their property, wages, and children.

February 18, Monday

Audre Geraldin Lorde (1934-1992): Lesbian

Born on this day in 1934, Lorde was an African American lesbian who spoke through her writing and political activism. She toured internationally, founding a women’s coalition in St. Croix as well a coalition between Afro-Dutch and Afro-German Women. Lorde also established the Women of Color Press and founded a sisterhood in South Africa. In 1989 she won the American Book Award for A Burst of Light and in 1991 was appointed New York State’s Poet Laureate by the Governor Mario Cuomo. Lorde also detailed her battle against breast cancer in The Cancer Journals before succumbing to the disease in 1992

February 21, Thursday

International Mother Language Day: United Nations

On November 17, 1999, UNESCO declared this day to promote cultural and linguistic diversity, as well as to celebrate the near-six thousand languages which are spoken in the world at this time. February 21st was specifically chosen in recognition of Language Martyr’s Day in Bangaladesh.

February 23, Saturday

William Edward Burkhardt Du Bois (1868-1963): African American

More commonly known as WEB Du Bois, Du Bois was a writer and civil rights activist. He was the most important leader of the effort to gain civil and human rights for African Americans in the early 1900s. His most famous work, The Souls of Black Folks, discussed the social conditions of Blacks in America, condemned Booker T. Washington’s tactics of accommodation and advocated a more active approach to improving conditions for African Americans. Du Bois founded the Niagara Movement, and helped found the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, which is still active today. He was an editor for The Crisis, the NAACP’s magazine, until 1934.

February 23,Saturday

Quanah Parker (1850-1911): American Indian

Quanah was the last chief of the Quahado band of the Comanche Indians. In 1867 he refused to sign the Treaty of Medicine Lodge which confined the Indians of the southern Plains to a reservation, as well as permitted railroads to be built through the land. However, in 1875, under threat of extermination, Quanah and his band surrendered and moved to the reservation of Fort Sill where Quanah was appointed chief of all the Comanche. In 1892, the government negotiated the Jerome agreement which gave 160 acres of land to each person on the reservation, but then forced them to sell all but half a million of those acres for $1.25 apiece. Parker lobbied Congress, pleading the cause of the Comanche. His efforts helped sow the seeds of the Indian-rights movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

February 24, Sunday

Purim (Feast of Lots): Jewish

This holiday celebrates the rescue of the ancient Persian Jews from an effort to eliminate them. The King’s advisor cast lots to decide which day to execute his plan, but the Jewish queen Esther convinced her husband to spare the Jews. Today, there is fasting the day before the Feast in commemoration of the fasting of Esther before pleading with her king. The story of Purim is told in synagogue, and children twirl noisemakers upon the mention of the king’s advisor. Gifts are given to the poor as well as exchanged among family and friends.