February 28, 2023

Poet, educator Nikki Giovanni to serve as Black History Month closing speaker tonight

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Acclaimed poet and educator Nikki Giovanni will close out a series of Black History Month events with a lecture at 7 p.m. today (Feb. 28) in Stewart Center’s Loeb Playhouse. Attendees are encouraged to register in advance.

The Black Cultural Center is proud to honor Black History Month and highlight its significance in the Purdue community through a series of shared events and programming that has celebrated Black excellence, recognized past accomplishments and taken action to create inclusion and belonging. 

To continue these celebratory efforts, the BCC is hosting Giovanni, an award-winning poet, writer, activist and educator. A central figure of the Black Arts Movement, she was dubbed the “Poet of the Black Revolution.” Her poetry collections include works such as “Black Feeling, Black Talk,” “Black Judgement” and “Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea.”

During her lecture, Giovanni will discuss her life as an artist, her creative process and how she has used literature to advance civil rights. Giovanni compels her readers to focus on justice, as her powerful words of wisdom remind audiences of their humanity. As the culminating speaker of Black History Month, she will reflect on the country’s diverse and shared history, celebrate African American achievements, and invite people to strive for equity.

When asked what the Purdue community could expect from her visit, Giovanni said, “When words are all we have, we must use them. In the classroom, when students disagree with something, they won’t say it. But words are all you have. Students must use their words, backed up by knowledge.”

This event is held in collaboration with Purdue University Libraries and School of Information Studies; Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies; and the African American Studies and Research Center.


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