Join ourcommunity-advisedconversation so that we can continue to serve you through our research and interpretation initiatives!
Time & Location
Feb 26, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Cannon Street Arts Center, 134 Cannon St, Charleston, SC 29403, USA
About the Event
As we continue the work we began with the Gullah society, we want to sit with community members who have consistently supported us and entrusted us with sharing the lives of the Anson Street Ancestors to ask you to direct our work. At this event, La’Sheia Oubré and Joanna Gilmore host the Community Conversation in personat Cannon Street,while Dr. Raquel Fleskes and Dr. Theodore Schurr will join via Zoom. Raquel and Theodore will be providing an update about the full genomic DNA research and the dental calculus research, which will help us to learn more about the Ancestors’ diet and health. We will also discuss plans for a permanent memorial for the Ancestors. Artwork inspired by the Ancestors and created by children and community members will also be on display.
Over the past year, Smithsonian readers like you have joined us for virtual live events. Together, we have explored the nation’s history, its triumphs as well as its failings. In our next event, we are turning our attention to powerful stories of resistance—moments when enslaved people acted in defiance—that represent an essential chapter in American history.
Join us for a unique online event featuring a discussion with Smithsonian scholars as well as segments of the just-released Smithsonian Channel documentary series, “One Thousand Years of Slavery.” You’ll gain historical insights from Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture curators Mary Elliott and Paul Gardullo. You’ll also view clips from the television series, which was executive produced by Courtney B. Vance and Angela Bassett, and field producer Najma Nuriddin will share behind-the-scenes perspective on how the documentary came together.
You’ll also have a chance to ask your own questions about these vitally important parts of the history of slavery in a Q&A; CBS News correspondent Errol Barnett will moderate the conversation and pose your queries to our panel of experts.
For Black History Month, join us online on Monday, February 28, at 7 p.m. EST for an evening filled with learning and history.
A recording of this presentation will be available to ticketholders via email after the event and will be accessible for on-demand viewing for one week.
February 9- Charleston City Council Meeting- Third and Final Reading on the Ordinance to Establish a Standing Committee on Human Affairs and Racial Conciliation)
Feb. 9, 12:00 p.m. – “Before Tuskegee: Human Experiments Under Slavery and Segregation in the United States” ft. Stephen Kenny, Ph.D. This is a virtual event, open to the public and registration is required. It is presented by the Student History Club. Learn more and register.
Feb. 9, 12:00 p.m. – “Black History Month: Hidden in plain sight” ft. Michael Allen. This is a virtual event, open to MUSC employees and staff only. This event will take place on Microsoft Teams. It is presented by the MUSC College of Nursing.
Feb. 11, 5:00 p.m. – 8th annual Black History Awards Program, “Extending the Dream” ft. B. DaNine Fleming, Ed.D. This is a virtual event, open to the public. This event will take place on Zoom. Meeting ID: 860 5350 4111 Passcode: 164860.
Feb. 16, 12:00 p.m. – “My feets is tired, but my soul is rested: The promises and limitations of African American resilience and restorative practice,” ft. Tonya M. Matthews, Ph.D. This is a virtual event, open to MUSC employees and students only. It is presented by the MUSC College of Dental Medicine and the MUSC Department of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Registration is required.
Feb. 16, 6:00 p.m. – “For the Future of Our Race: African Americans and Healthcare in 20th Century South Carolina” ft. Cherisse Jones-Branch, Ph.D. This is a virtual event, open to the public and registration is required. It is presented by the Waring Library and the MUSC Office of Humanities. Learn more and register.
The Black History Month Lecture, co-sponsored by the Waring Historical Library and the MUSC Office of Humanities, will be held Wednesday, February 16, 2022, at 6 PM virtually on Zoom. This year’s speaker will be Dr. Cherisse Jones-Branch, from the Arkansas State University-Jonesboro. Dr. Jones-Branch will present on the topic, “For the Future of Our Race: African Americans and Healthcare in 20th Century South Carolina.”
This event will count as 1 DEI Hour Credit.
Cherisse Jones-Branch is the James and Wanda Lee Vaughn Professor of History, Dean of the Graduate School at Arkansas State University-Jonesboro, and a 2021-2022 American Council on Education Fellow. A native of Charleston, she received her B.A. and M.A. from the College of Charleston, and a doctorate in History from The Ohio State University. Dr. Jones-Branch is the author of Crossing the Line: Women and Interracial Activism in South Carolina during and after World War II and the co-editor of Arkansas Women: Their Lives and Times. A second manuscript, Better Living By Their Own Bootstraps: Black Women’s Activism in Rural Arkansas, 1913-1965, is now available from the University of Arkansas Press. Jones-Branch is currently working on a third book project titled “. . . To Make the Farm Bureau Stronger and Better for All the People:” African Americans and the American Farm Bureau Federation: 1920-1966.
The event is free and open to the public. Seating for this virtual event is limited and registration is required. Register by Tuesday, February 15, 2022, at 5 PM to reserve your seat and receive log in information.
This lecture is the third of four annual lectures which comprise the Waring Society Lecture Series. The Waring Society Lecture Series provides a look at new, fresh, and innovative research and publications on the history of the health sciences. Each lecture will be presented in a hybrid format, part formal recorded presentation and part live discussion online with the author-historian. Those who wish to attend will need to register so that you can receive the necessary link to join the presentation.
The session will include a discussion on why therapy is important, with a focus on Black people, what to expect when attending a visit, why mental health matters, self-care in times of COVID-19, how to engage young people in the mental health conversation, and the impact of social justice issues has on ones’ mental health. The discussion will be held with mental health professionals Dr. Jerez Mitchell and Tita Johnson, LPC.
Presenter Bios
Dr. Jerez MitchellTita Johnson, LPC
Dr. Jerez Mitchell
Dr. Jerez Mitchell is a mental health consultant and provides psychoeducational programming and advocacy for children and adults. She currently works at the Charleston Area Urban League as a Program Coordinator and Community Organizer. She is an adjunct professor at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California and the Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina.
Dr. Mitchell obtained her bachelor’s degree in Psychology at Spelman College and her Master’s and PhD degree in Counseling Psychology from Howard University. She completed two Post-Doctoral specializations: First in Couples and Family Therapy at the Ralph H. Johnson Veteran Affairs Medical Center in Charleston, SC where she provided individual, couple, group and family therapy for Veterans and their loved ones. Her second specialization was as an After-hours/Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention Resident in the Counseling and Psychiatry department at the University of South Carolina (USC). Here she provided individual, group, and couples therapy for USC students and psychoeducational programming for the campus at large. Dr. Mitchell is an alumna of the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning program at Howard University and currently consults for various boards and coalitions regarding mental health, diversity, inclusion, and equity.
Dr. Mitchell is the co-creator of Cuts and Conversations, an initiative to increase the retention, progression, and completion rates of Black Males at colleges, universities, and beyond. She is the co-founder of Southern Conduits, LLC which is a consulting firm that specializes in wellness management, community engagement, and program management. Jerez honors her sense of responsibility to her community and strives to advocate and implement cultural and evidence-based interventions and programs that can positively impact marginalized populations.
In her free time, Jerez enjoys spending time with her husband and son at the beach.
Tita Johnson, LPC
Tita Johnson is a Licensed Professional Counselor with over ten years of experience in the field.
She became a counselor because she wanted to help individuals, families, and couples face challenges and to be able to walk with them through difficult situations. Her passion is helping children, adolescents, and adults heal from traumatic experiences and move towards a more fulfilling and empowered life. She is currently a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), an LPC Supervisor (LPCS), Licensed Addiction Counselor (LAC), Master Addictions Counselor (MAC) an Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor (AADC), and a Certified EMDR Therapist.
Mrs. Johnson has a wide range of experience that has led her to work in different settings with a variety of conditions. Some of her specialty areas include trauma, depression, anxiety, family counseling, and child and adolescent issues.
Back by popular demand, ASALH presents an encore viewing of A Conversation with Henry Louis Gates and Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham on Friday, March 26 at 4 pm (est). Don’t miss this March marquee festival event replay!
ASALH guests who purchased the premier showing on February 20, 2021 can view the encore performance at no additional charge.
The Charles Joyner Institute for Gullah and African Diaspora Studies examines the historical migration and scattering of African populations to local geographical areas and the subsequent evolution of blended cultures, specifically Gullah. CCU’s location at the northern tip of the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor puts it in a unique position for diaspora study and research. The work of the institute provides students with experiential learning opportunities, both at home and abroad, that center on interconnections among local, national, and global peoples and their societies. The Institute is also a catalyst for community involvement.
Charleston Area Branch of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History 