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  • The Courage to Challenge Racial Injustice and Build Equity in Education: A Conversation with Ruby Bridges

    Social Justice Academy Professional Development Series Fall 2024 Series

    A Conversation with Ruby Bridges in recognition of the 70th Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education

    Co-moderated by Vernon Smith, Ph.D., and Zaneta Rago-Craft, Ed.D.

    Co-sponsored with the Monmouth University Intercultural Center

    Ruby Bridges is a civil rights icon, activist, author, and speaker who at the age of 6 was the first Black student to integrate an all-white elementary school alone in Louisiana. She was born in Mississippi in 1954, the same year the United States Supreme Court handed down its landmark decision ordering the integration of public schools. Her family later moved to New Orleans, where on Nov. 14, 1960, Bridges began attending William Frantz Elementary School, single-handedly initiating the desegregation of public education. Her walk to the front door of the school was immortalized in Norman Rockwell’s painting “The Problem We All Live With”, in Robert Coles’ book “The Story of Ruby Bridges”, and in the Disney movie “Ruby Bridges”.

    She established the Ruby Bridges Foundation to provide leadership training programs that inspire youth and community leaders to embrace and value the richness of diversity. Bridges is the recipient of numerous awards, including the NAACP Martin Luther King Award, the Presidential Citizens Medal, and honorary doctorate degrees from Connecticut College, College of New Rochelle, Columbia University Teachers College, and Tulane University. Bridges is also the author of “Through My Eyes”, “This Is Your Time”, “I Am Ruby Bridges”, and “Dear Ruby, Hear Our Hearts”, released in January 2024. In March 2024, she was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame.

  • Black History Month Alumni Career Panel

    Presented by The Intercultural Center, Alumni Engagement and Annual Giving, and Career Development

    Join us for a panel discussion with Black Alumni as they share their stories from college to career, obstacles they had to overcome and offer advice on how to prepare for a successful career. All alumni are invited to attend the panel and mixer after to network with students and fellow Hawks! Food and beverages will be provided.

  • Step Afrika

    Enjoy the company’s self-titled work Step Afrika! This show introduces audiences to stepping through both a traditional and contemporary lens. Step Afrika! blends percussive dance styles practiced by historically African American fraternities and sororities; traditional African dances; and an array of contemporary dance and art forms into a cohesive, compelling artistic experience. Performances are much more than dance shows; they integrate songs, storytelling, humor, and audience participation. The blend of technique, agility, and pure energy makes each performance unique and leaves the audience with their hearts pounding.(presented in partnership with Student Activities)

  • Asbury Park and the Great Migration – Film Screening and Panel Talk Back

    A Film by Erin Fleming for Paradoxical Paradise: An African American Digital Oral History and Mapping Project of Asbury Park.

    Featuring Claude Taylor and Madonna Carter Jackson.

    Presented by the Department of History and Anthropology. Made possible in part by funding from the Diversity Innovation Grant (DIG) program administered by the Intercultural Center and Office of the Provost.

    Panelists

    • Hettie V. Williams, Ph.D.: panel moderator and associate professor of African American History, Department of History and Anthropology
    • Claude Taylor: director for Academic Transition and Inclusion and lecturer in the Department of Communications
    • Erin Fleming: director of Production Services and director and producer, “Asbury Park and the Great Migration”

  • A Community Conversation With Dr. Cornel West

    Co-sponsored by the Basie Center, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield, and Monmouth University’s Social Justice Academy and Intercultural Center.

    Featured Opener: A’Liah Moore ’23

  • Black History Month Open Mic Night – Joy, Justice and Solidarity

    Flyer for Open Mic Night - Joy, Justice and Solidarity from 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday, February 28, 2022 as part of Black History Month. Click or tap image to view detailed image
    Click or tap image to view detailed image.

    CommWorks: Students Committed to Performance and the MU Intercultural Center invite you to join us for the Black History Month Open Mic Night – Joy, Justice and Solidarity – from 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday,  February 28 at the Student Center Fireplace Lounge.

    Performances should be 3 to 5 minutes long and can include poetry, recitation, song, prose and more!

    $25 Prizes Awarded to Top Performers!

    Want to practice? Join in on the CommWorks weekly practice sessions every Wednesday from 2:50 to 4:20 p.m. in Plangere Room 235.

    You can sign up now in advance or sign up at the event.

     

     

  • Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Distinguished Lecture in Social Justice: Alexis Pauline Gumbs

  • Human Rights and the Environment: Perspectives from India

    This panel features experts on a wide range of emerging challenges that India faces at the intersection of human rights and the environment including climate justice litigation, the interplay between sustainable development and the rights of indigenous communities, climate change communication and climate migration, and the relationship between climate migration and human trafficking.

    Moderator: Prof. Randall S. Abate, Director, Institute for Global Understanding

    The event is free and open to the public but registration is required. Please fill out and submit the available form to receive the Zoom link for this session.

  • Campus Read Book Discussion – Ibram X. Kendi, How to Be an Antiracist

    Join faculty and staff facilitators for a campus-wide book discussion on Ibram X. Kendi’s How to Be an Antiracist.

    Get a free copy of the book today (first come, first served) from the Monmouth University Bookstore!

    Join us on Zoom

  • Black History Month 2021

    Each year, Monmouth University observes National Black History Month throughout the month of February. Originating in 1926 under the vision of African American historian Carter G. Woodson, Black History Month provides opportunities for all members of the university to explore the histories, legacies, and current contributions of individuals across the African Diaspora. Join the Black History Month Planning Committee for our month-long virtual event series including events organized by students, faculty, and staff.