Feb. 1
10 a.m. – Noon “Voting Rights, Political Power and Power in the Black Community,” George Mitchell, moderator. Part I: Voting in America: A Historical Perspective, with Patrick Keenan-Devlin, deputy director, The Moran Institute. Part II: Voter Registration and Participation, with r. Jonathan Mc Kinney, Region III, field organizer, NAACP. Levy Center, 300 Dodge Ave.

Feb. 2
1 p.m. African Marketplace and Culture Fair Kick-Off Event. This family-friendly event will feature lively African American marketplace, entertainment and cuisine.  Fleetwood-Jourdain Community Center, 1655 Foster St.

4 p.m. “Unforgettable” Viewing Party.  Produced by the McGaw YMCA and filmmaker Susan Hope Engel, the documentary “Unforgettable”honors the unforgettable legacy of the Emerson Street Branch YMCA, which became an anchor for the social and civic life of Evanston’s black 1909-69. Fleetwood-Jourdain Community Center, 1655 Foster St.

Feb. 3
7 p.m. Celebrating African American Poets. To honor the literary contributions of black poets, the Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre and Next Theatre Company will presents theatrical reading of poems by famous African American poets, including Langston Hughes, Maya Angelou, Arna Bontemps, Nikki Giovanni, W.E.B. Dubois, Alice Walker and more.  Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes St.

Feb. 5
6:45 p.m. Three Critical Black History Talks on Racism: Part One. Room 122, University Hall on the Northwestern University campus, 1897 Sheridan Road.

Feb. 6
6 p.m. “Black History Month: Its Relevance to You.” Elder 1st Floor Lounge on the Northwestern University campus, 2400 Sheridan Road.

8 p.m. “Changing Your Mindset.”  Conference Room, The Black House, on the Northwestern University campus, 1917 Sheridan Road.

Feb. 8
10 a.m. – Noon  “Creative Arts and the Black Community.”  Levy Center, 300 Dodge Ave.

Feb. 9
7 p.m. Alice Millar Birthday Concert: 50th Anniversary Celebration. Alice Millar Chapel, 1870 Sheridan Road.

Feb. 10
6 p.m. Northwestern Community Ensemble Presents Black History Month.First Floor Lounge, Bobb-McCullouch on the Northwestern University campus, 2305 Sheridan Road.

Feb. 12
12:30 p.m. “Escape From New York”: Discussion with Minkah Makalani. Room 2-425, Kresge Hall, on the Northwestern University campus, 1880 Campus Drive.

Feb. 15
10 a.m. – Noon “The Continuing Legacy of Pan-African Resistance.” Levy Center, 300 Dodge Ave.

3 p.m. “Alice’s Ordinary People.”  Family Focus Theater, 2010 Dewey Ave. Viewers can spend the afternoon with Alice Tregay, an Evanston native known for her commitment as a longtime civil rights and voter registration activist, and see her documentary about ordinary people who made things happen. Filmed by Craig Dudnick.
 
4 p.m. Celebration of African American Spirituals. Family Focus Theater, 2010 Dewey Ave. Spirituals not only expressed the hopes of generations of enslaved African Americans for hundreds of years in the United States, they also provided inspiration for and gave voice to the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Reception will follow in Norwood Hall, lower level. 

Feb. 22
11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. will host “My Black is Beautiful – a conversation on the relevance, power and image of the African American girl.” The presentation will feature Kimberly D. Brown, Ph.D., director of The Blackberry Preserve: Counsel on Historical Interpretation, Cultural Relevancy and Marketing. Family Focus Theater at 2010 Dewey Ave.

Feb. 28
6 p.m. African American Youth Achievement Awards. Reception in second-floor Terrace room before the 7 p.m. ceremony in the third-floor Upstairs Theatre. Evanston Township High School, 1600 Dodge Ave.


Runs Through Feb. 23

The Luck of the Irish, at Next Theatre Company, 927 Noyes, 847-475-1875

Ticket prices range from $30-$40

Thursday at 7:30, Friday at 8, Saturday at 4 and 8, Sunday at 2


When an upwardly mobile African-American couple wants to buy a home in an all white neighborhood of 1950’s Boston, they pay a struggling Irish family to “ghost-buy” a house on their behalf. Fifty-two years later, the Irish family wants “their” house back. Moving across two eras, Luck of the Irish explores our legacy of racial and class issues and the long held secrets that tie two families and one house together.