Celebrate Black History Month with a fun, and educational challenge for adults and teens!
The Challenge runs February 1- 29. Register in Beanstack, or in person at the Adult Services desk, at the Main Library. Everyone who signs up will receive a snack-size package of cookies from Partake Foods, a Black-owned company. Complete at least one of the four Activity Badges listed below, for a chance to win a $20 Target gift card, and a copy of Octavia Butler’s “Kindred.”
Activity Badge READ
Option 1: Read a book by a Black author.
Option 2: Read a work of nonfiction about the life or lives of influential Black people.
Check out the displays in the Adult Services department, on the Octagon table near New Releases, and near the Adult Services desk by Non-Fiction. Click the links above to browse, and place a book on hold to pick up at the library.
To help you easily find e-books and audiobooks, Hoopla has organized the works of influential Black authors and poets. Discover the work of Alice Walker, Octavia Butler, journalist Ida B. Wells, Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, Phillis Wheatley, poets of the Harlem Renaissance, as well as many top contemporary Black writers. For biographies, check out Hoopla’s African-American Trailblazers Collection. Fans of graphic novels can find plenty of great reads in Hoopla’s Black History Month Comics collection.
Activity Badge WATCH
Option 1: Watch a documentary about the contributions and/or history of Black Americans
Option 2: Watch a movie written or directed by a Black filmmaker, or one that centers on the lives of Black people.
Visit the Adult Services department for DVDs and Blu-Rays, on display near the Makerspace.
For streaming options, Kanopy’s Black History Month Collection offers independent dramas, musicals, and classic Black cinema releases. Among the numerous biographies and documentaries, you’ll find HBO’s Being Serena, about tennis superstar Serena Williams, Jazz: A Film by Ken Burns, PBS documentaries on Black life and culture, and much more. Hoopla’s digital video catalog also includes TV shows and movies to stream.
Activity Badge LISTEN
Listen to an album or playlist by a Black Artist
AAPLD’s collection of Vinyl and CD releases includes classic and current artists, including Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson, Drake, Lamar, Lizzo, Cardi B, and Beyonce. Check out the display in the library by Large Print, or our browse our online catalog.
Freegal, AAPLDs, free music app, gives you access to over 18 million songs. Listen right in the app, or download up to five songs per week to keep. Discover classic and contemporary songs on the Black History Month playlist; and timeless artists on the Black History Month: The Legends playlist. Or search for your favorite albums and artists. All you need is an AAPLD library card. Download the free app, enter your card number and start listening! For more listening options, visit Hoopla, and search by artist or album name.
Activity Badge VISIT
Option 1: Visit the DuSable Black History Museum of Chicago in person. Click for visitor information.
Option 2: Explore the DuSable Museum virtually, with this introduction from Great Museums
Option 3: Take a virtual field trip with National Geographic highlighting the contributions of Black explorers.
Option 4: Take a virtual tour of the National Museum of African American History in Washington D.C.