In 1961, young Hezekiah Watkins was arrested at the Greyhound Bus Station in Jackson, Mississippi at the age of 13 where he was sent in a paddy wagon to Mississippi’s State Penitentiary, known as Parchman Penitentiary, and placed on Death Row. His crime? Allegedly participating with a group known as the Freedom Riders who had […]

The Mississippi Humanities Council, in partnership with the Visit Mississippi, will unveil a Freedom Trail marker February 25th at Canton High School 10 am in Canton to honor the extraordinary work of Annie Devine, one of the first three Black women to stand on the floor of the House of Representative in Washington, she demanded that […]

Dr. Robbie Luckett presents: "The Mississippi Plan and the Rise of Jim Crow" After the Civil War, African Americans in the South, newly freed, expressed a tangible optimism that led to the reuniting of families, the development of social institutions like the black church, the rise of cultural expressions like the Blues and jazz, the […]

The 2024-2025 season is an annual program of the Natchez Historical Society, consisting of 8 regular monthly presentations by expert speakers on humanities topics pertinent to the history of the Natchez area. Scheduled for February 25, 2025: Paula C. Johnson, Professor, Syracuse University College of Law; Co-Founder and Director of the Syracuse University College of […]

Rosalynn Rutland is Blue Mountain Christian University’s 2025 Humanities Teacher of the Year. Rutland’s lecture, Educators Perceive Biliteracy as a Resource for Students in Mississippi, will be presented 2/27/25 at 4:00 pm on the college’s campus in the Paschal Student Union Building. This is a presentation of portions of a qualitative study, “Listening to the Voices of […]

This presentation, by Jerry Jenkins, will give the listener a glimpse of the Mande Culture of West Africa. In the tradition of the Mande, the history and culture is orally preserved in the minds and through the music of the Djeli (oral librarian/mandenka hereditary professional musicians). The establishment of the Mali Empire can be recalled […]

In honor of the centennial birthday of Medgar W. Evers, the Mississippi Humanities Council and the Medgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Monument will co-host a program titled A Centennial Conversation: The Legacy of Medgar Evers, 100 years Later. The program will consist of a conversation between Dr. Miranda Freeman, Dean of Humanities at Tougaloo College […]

The Mississippi Humanities Council, in partnership with the Visit Mississippi, will unveil a Freedom Trail marker February 28th in Fayette  at the Jefferson County Courthouse at 12 pm to honor the extraordinary work of Charles Evers. Evers was elected in Fayette, Mississippi, as the first African-American mayor of a biracial town in Mississippi since the […]

What a fun and enlightening way to round out the 2025 Black History Month Celebration! Attendees are encouraged to wear your Greek and/or HBCU attire and share this fabulous evening among friends and family! We are excited to welcome speaker Jean Greene, co-director of the Utica Institute Museum who will speak about The Legacy of […]