Celebrate Black History Month all around South Florida at these events
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February is Black History Month, a time to pay tribute to the generations of African Americans who struggled to achieve full citizenship rights in the United States.
From Miami to Fort Lauderdale, there is an extensive calendar of events, including an Afro-Caribbean music festival, a step dance show, a vegan soul food fest and events for children.
Here’s a taste of all that you can do and enjoy during South Florida’s tribute to Black History Month:
MIAMI-DADE
▪ Feb. 2: During “A Look into the Past: The Story of Virginia Key Beach Park,’ a virtual presentation by Northeast Dade Aventura Library and Virginia Key Beach Park Trust, attendants will learn about Virginia Key Beach’s history and culture. It begins at 6 p.m. To reserve your spot, email info@virginiakeybeachpark.net or call: (305) 960-4600.
▪ Feb. 4: “Heroes in My House: A Magical Journey Through Black History” follows a young Black student who’s just been assigned to make a presentation about an important figure from Black History. This sensory inclusive performance at the Sandrell Rivers Theater, 6103 NW Seventh Ave., Miami, is designed to create a performing arts experience that is welcoming to all families with children with autism or with other disabilities that create sensory sensitivities. It begins at 12 p.m. and tickets are $5. For more information, contact the Box Office at 305-284-8872 or boxoffice@ftfshows.com. You can also visit tickets.ftfshows.com/TheatreManager/1/tmEvent/tmEvent891.html.
▪ Feb. 4: The “Heritage Fest 2023: Black Resistance” recognizes the strength and perseverance of the African diaspora and its resistance to historic and ongoing oppression. Starting at 3 p.m., the free festival will feature a dance workshop, children’s book readings, vendor marketplace, community mural painting and performances by the Rev. Melvin Dawson & The Genesis Fellowship Delegation and Victoria Blue at the Adrienne Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami. To RSVP, visit arshtcenter.org.
▪ Feb. 4: Presented by the North Miami CRA, Caribe Arts Fest is a multi-genre art festival celebrating the arts of the Caribbean and the Americas. It will be held at Griffing Park, NE 123 St. and W Dixie Hwy., North Miami, on Feb. 4 from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. Free admission. For more information, visit caribeartsfest.com.
Feb. 4 Board a coach bus in Miami Shores and attend a narrated ride through Overtown, Liberty City, and Brownsville with a stop for lunch at Red Rooster Overtown. The tour will highlight inequities created and codified by the Redline practices that were established during the 1930’s New Deal of the Roosevelt administration. Before returning home, participants will enjoy a group lunch at Red Rooster Overtown. The five-hour tour will depart from the C. Lawton McCall Community Center, 9617 Park Dr., Miami Shores, at 10:30 a.m. This event is sold out. For more information, visit eventbrite.com/cc/a-closer-look-at-where-we-live-1589189.
▪ Through Feb. 12: The Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow exhibition explores the struggle for full citizenship and racial equality that unfolded in the 50 years after the Civil War. Art, artifacts, photographs, and media illustrate these transformative decades in American history and their continuing relevance today. The exhibition is at HistoryMiami Museum, 101 W Flagler St., Miami. Free admission. For more information, visit historymiami.org/exhibition/black-citizenship.
▪ Through Feb. 12: CAPTURE: A Portrait of the Pandemic is HistoryMiami Museum exhibition presents images that represent experiences of 2020, when Miami struggled with the realities of a pandemic, racial injustice protests and a faltering entertainment industry. More than 60 stunning images make up the curated exhibition, shot by Rahsaan “Fly Guy” Alexander, one of Miami’s most renowned club DJs. Free admission. For more information, visit historymiami.org/exhibition/capture-a-portrait-of-the-pandemic.
▪ Through Feb. 28: AfriKin Art in collaboration with the North Miami Community Redevelopment Agency (NMCRA) is proud to present, The Gaze Africana – a contemporary fine art exhibition of African excellence for Black History Month 2023. Opens Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Free admission. To RSVP, visit eventbrite.com/e/the-gaze-africana-an-exhibit-of-african-excellence-tickets-492781822697.
▪ Feb. 7: “Black History Month Celebration — Frost Studio Jazz Band” celebrates the Black contributions to the cultural landscape of the Americas with the Etienne Charles and the Frost Studio Jazz Band. The event will start at 7:30 p.m. at the University of Miami’s Gusman Concert Hall, 1314 Miller Dr., Coral Gables. Tickets start at $20 for adults, $16 for seniors and $10 for children. To purchase tickets, visit events.miami.edu.
▪ Feb. 7: Through music and narration, the Grammy Award-winning saxophonist and bandleader Branford Marsalis guides New World Symphony in sharing the story of James Reese Europe, the trailblazing musician who brought ragtime into the mainstream and went on to be remembered as “the Martin Luther King Jr. of music.” Tickets for this 7 p.m. event start at $40. To purchase them, visit nws.edu/events-tickets.
▪ Feb. 8: In the “Transatlantic Conversations: Black Renaissance Pianism across the Pond British,” musicologist and pianist Dr. Samantha Ege shares moving and memorable piano-centric music by influential Black composers including Amanda Aldridge, Harry T. Burleigh and Robert Nathaniel Dett. It starts at 7:30 p.m. at the New World Center’s Truist Pavilion, 500 17th St., Miami Beach. Tickets are $25. To purchase tickets, visit nws.edu/events-tickets.
▪ Feb. 10: Join the Creative Spot for “Black History Gala: Loving the Culture,” a night of dining, and dancing in honor of Black History Month. This event is from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m., Feb. 11, at The Creative Spot, 1222 NE 163rd St., North Miami Beach. Admission is $60. To purchase tickets, visit eventbrite.com/e/black-history-gala-loving-the-culture-tickets-487311992287.
▪ Feb. 11: Don’t miss Pérez Art Museum Miami’s Tenth Anniversary of “Art + Soul celebrating the Fund for Black Art. Come support the Fund and enjoy an evening of art, cocktails, music and dancing under the stars. Cocktails and dinner begin at 6:15 p.m. at the Perez Art Museum, 1103 Biscayne Blvd., Miami. This event is sold out. For more information, visit pamm.org/en/event/tenth-anniversary-of-art-soul/.
▪ Feb. 11: Join South Florida People of Color for “Florida’s Underground Railroad: Southern Road to Freedom,” a talk about how enslaved Africans sought to regain their freedom and fought to maintain it, escaping slavery using Florida’s Underground Railroad and establishing “free towns” when the territory was part of the Spanish empire. The event is from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Brockway Memorial Library, 10021 NE Second Ave., Miami Shores. Free admission. To RSVP, visit eventbrite.com/cc/a-closer-look-at-where-we-live-1589189.
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▪ Feb. 11: Enjoy Leon Foster Thomas, his band and the Peter London Global Dance Company in celebration of his new album, CALASANTIUS. The new project is a unique blend of Caribbean influence and spirit evolving form Foster’s Trinidadian heritage, combined with dexterous and innovative jazz complexity. A pre-concert talk begins at 7 p.m. before the 8 p.m. main event at the Miami Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach. General admission is $25. For more information, visit dranoff2piano.org.
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▪ Feb. 13: UTrailblazers of the University of Miami, United Black Students, UM Student Government and the Cosford Cinema will collaborate to celebrate the legacy of Academy Award-winning actor Sir Sidney Poitier, with a Poitier Black History Month film and discussion at the Cosford Cinema, 5030 Brunson Dr., Coral Gables. The featured 7 p.m. film will be “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” one of the late Sir Poitier’s most popular and controversial films. There will be a pre-film reception at 6:30 p.m. To RSVP, email your name and contact information to cosford@miami.edu.
▪ Feb. 14: Join HistoryMiami Museum at 1 p.m. for a guided tour of Stories of Resistance from Black Miami, a locally curated oral history project co-created by the museum and individuals involved in past and contemporary movements. It explores Black Miami’s long and ongoing struggle, resistance, and resilience in response to racial injustice through the eyes of notable Miami activists including Thelma Gibson, Betty Ferguson and Lonnie Lawrence. Self-guided tours are available through Feb. 12. Free admission. For more information, visit historymiami.org/exhibition/black-citizenship.
▪ Feb. 17: Join the Miami-Dade Public Library System to watch the movie “Hidden Figures,” the story of three female African-American mathematicians who provided crucial calculations for NASA’s space race against the Soviets, all while dealing with the racist and sexist assumptions of their white co-workers. The watch party is from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Miami Beach Regional library, 227 22nd St., Miami Beach. Free admission. For more information, visit mdpls.org/event/7759210.
▪ Feb. 18: The Black History Gospel Music Brunch and Awards returns for its sixth edition at Florida Memorial University’s Albert E. & Sadie B. Smith Conference Center, 15800 NW 42nd Ave., Miami Gardens. Presented by the Miami-Dade Alliance of Gospel Music Professionals, this annual event starting at 9 a.m. celebrates the history and heritage of gospel and honors community members. Admission is $50. For more information, visit mdagmp.com/events-2.
▪ Feb. 18: Join the South Florida People of Color for a screening and discussion of “The Crucifixion of Colored Town: Mass Incarceration in Miami,” presented by Dr. Fernando Perez. Through interviews with local community leaders, activists, and academics, the film chronicles the history of Black Miami, highlighting the various forms of institutional discrimination that have affected the development of these communities since the city’s inception, and how these historic forms of institutional oppression are currently manifested within policies of mass criminalization and incarceration. The screening and discussion is from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Brockway Memorial Library, 10021 NE Second Ave., Miami Shores. Free admission. To RSVP, visit eventbrite.com/cc/a-closer-look-at-where-we-live-1589189.
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▪ Feb. 23-26: The 26th annual Melton Mustafa Jazz Festival presents “Continuing the Legacy of Jazz,” an opportunity for middle school, high school, college students and band directors to participate and interact with professional jazz musicians at the Black Archives Historic Lyric Theater, 812 NW Second Ave., Miami. Tickets range from $15 to $225. For more information, visit meltonmustafajazzfestival.com.
▪ Feb. 25: Join the South Florida People of Color for “Where we live,” a discussion on the past, present, and future of Miami Shores. Attendees will be encouraged to reflect and discuss their role in the community’s future and explore how the past sets an example for us to learn from. The discussion is from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Brockway Memorial Library, 10021 NE Second Ave., Miami Shores. Free admission. To RSVP, visit eventbrite.com/cc/a-closer-look-at-where-we-live-1589189.
▪ Feb. 24-26: If it is food that you are into, the sixth annual Soul Vegan Food festival might be what you are looking for. The event, which includes live music, will be at 101 Seventh St., Miami Beach. Admission options include free, $25 and $50. To purchase tickets, visit soulveganfestival.com.
BROWARD
▪ Through May 27: The exhibition “Walls turned sideways are bridges,” which inaugurated Feb. 2, focuses on the evolution of radical community activist movements that became prominent in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Through organizations like the Black Panther Party, The Young Lords Party, Brown Berets, the American Indian Movement and others, young people became the vanguard for social change felt nationally and globally. In addition to documentary photos, the exhibition will include ephemera in the form of foreign books, pamphlets, vintage buttons, pins, historical mainstream newspapers, flyers, t-shirts, vinyl records and posters. The free exhibition is at the African American Research Library and Cultural Center, 2650 Sistrunk Blvd., Fort Lauderdale. For more information, visit broward.libnet.info/event/7759890.
▪ Feb. 3: Honor Black History Month with an ongoing video presentation, crafts, and black heritage art from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Jan Moran Collier City Learning Library, 2800 NW Ninth Ct., Pompano Beach. Free admission. For more information, visit broward.libnet.info/events.
▪ Feb. 4: From 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., test your knowledge on facts about Black history at the Black History Month Trivia in the Sunrise Dan Pearl Library Branch, 10500 W Oakland Park Blvd., Sunrise. Free admission. For additional information, visit broward.libnet.info/events.
▪ Feb. 5: Blending percussive dance styles practiced by historically African-American fraternities and sororities, “Step Afrika!” features traditional West and Southern African dances. It starts at 6 p.m. at the Lillian S. Wells Hall at The Parker, 707 Northeast Eighth St., Fort Lauderdale. Tickets range from $25 to $40. To purchase them, visit parkerplayhouse.com/events/detail/step-afrika-2023.
▪ Feb. 10: Celebrate Black History Month through dance and story-telling performance from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Miramar Branch Library and Education Center, 2050 Civic Center Pl., Miramar. Free admission. For more information, visit broward.libnet.info/events.
▪ Feb. 11: Pompano Beach Library brings you the first of two critically acclaimed films by the award winning documentarian Marlon Riggs. Ethnic Notions is a highly informative documentary that traces the origins of harmful African American stereotypes and their effects on Post-Civil War America. Narrated by beloved actress Ether Rolle. The movie and discussion free event is from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Pompano Beach Library and Cultural Center, 50 W Atlantic Blvd., Pompano Beach. To register, visit broward.libnet.info/event/7390001.
▪ Feb. 18: Pompano Beach Library brings you the second of two critically acclaimed films by the award winning documentarian Marlon Riggs. Color Adjustment traces 40 years of race relations through the lens of prime time entertainment, scrutinizing television’s racial myths and stereotypes. Narrated by famed actress Ruby Dee. The movie and discussion free event is from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Pompano Beach Library and Cultural Center, 50 W Atlantic Blvd., Pompano Beach. To register, visit broward.libnet.info/event/7390013.
▪ Feb. 18-19: Recognizing that human trafficking is a significant threat to inner city youth, students in the YMCA of South Florida’s Teen Broadway present “Adamma the Enlightening,” a play they direct and perform to provide a realistic view of the lives of victims and survivors of human trafficking. This play provides a curated version of real-life stories of real victims and survivors. “Adamma the Enlightening” will be on stage in the Victory Black Box Theatre at the L.A. Lee YMCA/Mizell Community Center, 1409 NW 6th St., Fort Lauderdale, at 2 p.m. on Feb. 18 and Feb. 19. Tickets begin at $10. For tickets and information visit https://bit.ly/3gPM8tK.
▪ Feb 23: The Urban League of Broward County proudly invites you to the Emergence Art Exhibit as our community celebrates Black history, art, and culture. From 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., this exhibit will feature curated collections from local artists and performance art from Urban League students. The Urban League and Broward College will also unveil the collaborative community mural designed by international visual artist Hiero Veiga at the Urban League of Broward County - Community Empowerment Center 560 NW 27th Ave., Fort Lauderdale. Free admission. To reserve a spot, visit historyfortlauderdale.org/museum.
▪ Feb. 25: Bring your family to the Sistrunk Annual Parade, filled with ROTC, steppers stepping, drill teams twirling and decorated floats ridden by local business owners and politicians. The parade represents the richness of Broward’s multi-cultural flavor and strong traditions. This event begins at 10 a.m. throughout the Sistrunk Boulevard (Northwest Sixth Street). For more information, visit sistrunkfestival.org/events.
▪ Feb. 25: If you are into live music, the Afro Carib Festival is the place to be. Artists include Jacob Forever, Koffee, J. Perry and Tekno. This event is from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. at the Miramar Amphitheater, 16801 Miramar Pkwy., Miramar. Tickets range from $25 to $125. To purchase them, visit afrocaribfestmiramar.com.
This story was originally published February 1, 2023 at 4:30 AM.
