February is (Black) USAmerican History Month

Putting aside the irony that February is the shortest month on the (Roman) calendar, let's attend to the significance of a month in which USAmericans, globally renown for our ignorance/neglect of history, focus at least some of our media and scholarly energies on reclaiming a past that includes Black people, celebrating their achievements and contributions.

In this vein, PBS has produced the powerful documentary, "Forgotten Genius," about a chemist, Percy L. Julian. Born in 1899, he was the first Black person to be admitted to the National Academy of Sciences, and rightly so. As the film demonstrates, he was an accomplished researcher leading with his scholarship and singular inventions in the industry, as well as championing civil rights, and cultivating the careers of a host of other Black scientists. (See the full NYT review.)

The Ongoing Barack-O Conversation

Here's another solid article (from In These Times) about how race matters continue to frame Barack Obama's political career.

And while you're at it, check his exploratory committee website.