Dear Everyone:

Biennially, I do a daily post during Black History Month (BHM) on my Instagram. I treat it like my own little 28-Day challenge. Perhaps next year, I’ll get my life together enough in January to actually create one of those cute, little calendars that mysteriously floats around the internets with a daily theme to showcase as much Black glory, Black struggle and Black ingenuity a measly 28 days can capture. But for now, all I can muster up is my own random, morning Instagram posts that easily are more of a testament to how I am feeling when I wake up than the vast history and beauty that is my people’s legacy. (At least I am not claiming to be a veteran historian, right? #KnowYourStrengths2017)

Therefore, this post will be a running tab of my daily IG posts–freshly copied and pasted–for your browsing pleasures. Quick backstory: I started doing these posts to spark conversation with my high school students, because, Chicago Public School’s (as I’m sure other places, alike) curriculum has been missing the mark when it comes to empowering our Black babies with knowledge about their cultures, their leaders, and definetly their historical accomplishments.

So if you see something you like or a bit of history you did not know, let’s talk about it! Want to add significant data that I have missed? You are more than welcome to do that, too! Let’s make the sharing of these tidbits of knowledge a unified front with the spirit of Carter G. Woodson himself.

Note:(1) If you would like to see this daily curation of Black Historical Magic at its original destination, follow me on IG @SincerelyTyra.

(2) There are four hashtags (#) that will ALWAYS accompany my daily BHM posts. They include:

#BlackHistory

#BlackPresence

#BlackLove

#DistinguishYourself –Again, this started as a way to encourage and empower my all-Black group of high school students at work.

(3) I think I am also supposed to mention that these photos are not my own unless otherwise noted. In other words, don’t sue me!
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Day 1: 
Of course on Day 1 of this month, I woke up like this:

Strolling thru the first day of Black History Month like…

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Day 2:

Since it’s Day 2 of BHM…

What other FLOTUS had TWO ivy league degrees? That’s right, you don’t know NAAN! (Trick Daddy and Trina fades into the background).

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Day 3 of BHM | Chicago Edition:

FLASHBACK: 1968. 

The day after the Chicago City Council voted to rename South Park Way after the recently assassinated Martin Luther King Jr, summer students at Dunbar Vocational High School Willie Thornton, Lamar Jackson and Pat Foster couldn’t wait for the city to change the signs. Some aldermen had complained that King deserved more of a tribute. That came five years later when Illinois became the first state to honor the civil-rights leader with a holiday.

Shoutout to my DVCA alum!

(Original source: Pinterest.com)

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Day 4:

Happy Belated, Mr. Hughes!

Since he’s so popular, I’ll indignantly assume you know who he is and leave you with one of his less popular poems. 

Dream Variations

 To fling my arms wide

In some place of the sun,

To whirl and to dance

Till the white day is done.

Then rest at cool evening

Beneath a tall tree

While night comes on gently,

    Dark like me—

That is my dream!

To fling my arms wide

In the face of the sun,

Dance!  Whirl!  Whirl!

Till the quick day is done.

Rest at pale evening . . .

A tall, slim tree . . .

Night coming tenderly

    Black like me.

-Langston Hughes

Find this and more of his work @ poets.org!

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Day 5:

Sunday’s Best: Crowd outside of fashionable Negro church after Easter Sunday service, Chicago, Illinois (c. 1941) 

Source: http://pin.it/vRb03Ax

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I’m a few days behind… so enjoy this quick flood.

Day 6

We See You: Tracee Ellis Ross made history this year when she took home a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a TV Comedy/Musical (for her role in Black•ish). The last Black woman to be recognized and honored by the GG’s Hollywood Film Society with this award was Debbie Allen some 34 years ago for the show Fame. 

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Day 7

Untold Histories Pt. 1:

1. Read the caption. 

2. Fact check. 

3. Congratulate the man, the mission, and the students who have advanced because it. 

4. Share the good news.

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Day 8:

A Writer’s Work:

“I’m the first black woman to write for Marvel,” Gay explains in the video above. “Which makes no sense. I didn’t know that when I signed on. And quite honestly, they didn’t either.”

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