Page 12
February 3, 2016
Arts &
ENTERTAINMENT
50 Years of Black History
From Black
Power to the
White House
A gorgeous new collection
of black American history has
arrived for civil rights readers
thanks to the tireless work of
scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and
Kevin M. Burke.
“And Still I Rise: From Black
Power to the White House,”
serves as a companion piece to
Henry Louis Gates Jr.’s PBS se-
ries, “And Still I Rise”—a time-
line and chronicle of the past 50
years of black history in the U.S.
with more than 350 photos.
Beginning with the assassi-
nation of Malcolm X in 1965,
the 2015 book explores the last
half-century of the African Amer-
ican experience. More than 50
years after the passage of the Civil
Rights Act and the birth of Black
Power, the United States has both
a black president and black CEOs
running Fortune 500 companies—
and a large black underclass beset
by persistent poverty, inadequate
education, and an epidemic of in-
carceration. Gates, a Harvard pro-
fessor and scholar, raises disturb-
ing and vital questions about this
dichotomy. How did the African
American community end up en-
compassing such profound contra-
dictions? And what will “the black
community” mean tomorrow?
Gates takes readers through the
major historical events and untold
stories of the years that have irre-
vocably shaped both the African
American experience and the na-
tion as a whole, from the explo-
sive social and political changes
of the 1960s, into the 1970s and
1980s—eras characterized by
both prosperity and neglect—
through the turn of the century
to today, taking measure of such
racial lashpoints as the Tawana
Brawley case, OJ Simpson’s mur-
der trial, the murders of Amadou
Diallo and Trayvon Martin, and
debates around the NYPD’s “stop
and frisk” policies.
Even as it surveys the politi-
cal and social evolution of black
America, And Still I Rise is also
a celebration of the accomplish-
ments of black artists, musicians,
writers, comedians, and thinkers
who have helped to deine Ameri-
can popular culture and to change
our world.
DJ Michael Morris
Valentine Ball and Dance
The African American Men’s
Club invites the community to a
Valentine’s dinner ball and dance
with proceeds to beneit the
group’s scholarship program.
The Saturday, Feb. 13 celebra-
tion will be held from 8 p.m. to
1 a.m. at the historic Billy Webb
Elks Lodge, 6 N. Tillamook St.
Music will be provided by disc
jockey Michael Morris, Portland’s
original king of old school. A raf-
le will take place for two Valen-
tine baskets and a romantic meal.
Tickets are $20 in advance and
$25 at the door. To reserve tick-
ets, contact Cynthia Livingston at
503-504-0640.