The SLC’s mission is to provide a unique living laboratory that educates and encourages sustainable practices in daily life, and we believe that understanding the history of this living laboratory is important to achieving our mission.
The fourth presentation in this series will be on Oregon's Black History, presented by Oregon Black Pioneers’ Public Programs and Exhibits Manager Mariah Rocker.
Oregon Black Pioneers is Oregon’s only historical society dedicated to preserving and presenting the experiences of African Americans statewide. For more than 30 years, they have illuminated the seldom-told stories of people of African descent in Oregon through engaging exhibits, public programs, publications, and historical research.
People of African descent have lived and worked in Oregon since before the founding of the earliest English-speaking settlements in the Americas. Despite this, the popular narrative of our state's history excludes the experiences of African Americans before the mid-20th century. This erasure is the result of historic legal and social marginalization that contributes to the ignorance of Oregon's Black heritage, as well as influences contemporary disparities in housing access, community investment, and policing. For this presentation, Oregon Black Pioneers will attempt to correct the record by highlighting key individuals and events that characterize Oregon's unique and centuries-old Black history.
Oregon Black Pioneers will also be hosting a Black History Walking Tour of Salem on Saturday, September 13th. You can sign up to attend that, or any of their other Black History Walking Tours, here.
The SLC appreciates any help we can get to continue hosting events like this! A $10 donation would be greatly appreciated, but feel free to donate what you are able to. You can donate online or in person at the event.
Capacity in the hall is limited, so please RSVP by submitting this form.
Join on Zoom
We are still finalizing details for other presentations in the Willamette Valley History Series; in the meantime check the SLC events page for updates and sign up to receive email updates
Want to help us promote this event? Here is the Facebook link.