KCC Center for Diversity hosting “Black Wall Street” presentation Feb. 16

A view of the reflecting pools area in front of the North Avenue campus on a sunny summer day.

Kellogg Community College’s Center for Diversity and Innovation invites the public to participate in an interactive learning experience focused on the history and impact of “Black Wall Street” communities in the U.S.

The KCC CDI’s “Rebuilding Black Wall Street: Justice, Peace & Community Love” will be presented by social justice educator and international diversity trainer Jada Monica Drew from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16, at Second Missionary Baptist Church, 485 N. Washington Ave., Battle Creek. The event is free and open to the public.

Drew’s presentation will include historical details about how the thriving “Black Wall Street” businesses of African-Americans helped form prominent U.S. cities including Atlanta, Brooklyn, Durham and Wilmington, N.C., New Orleans and Tulsa. Participants will learn how these areas were affected by the political forces, ethnic cleansing and infrastructural changes of the times, and will be challenged to rethink community revitalization while honoring the contributions of black Americans.

After attending the presentation, participants also will:

  • Better understand the contributions of African-Americans in the U.S.
  • Better understand the strategies for celebrating black history and duplicating the success of Black Wall Street communities
  • Recognize the historic plight of black communities under siege in the U.S.
  • Better understand how the roles of the media, economics and politics of the past are connected to the present

A native of Rich Square, N.C., presenter Drew holds a master’s degree in Global and International Education from Drexel University and a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Guilford College. The founder and CEO of Social Designs, LLC, a social justice consulting firm, Drew works with hundreds of people each year consulting and training in areas of social change.

For more information about the KCC CDI’s “Rebuilding Black Wall Street” event, contact Tha Par, program assistant at the CDI, at 269-565-2123 or part@kellogg.edu or visit www.kellogg.edu/kcccdi.

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