Smithsonian Hosts Family Day Honoring Black History Month

The National Portrait Gallery kicked off Black History Month Saturday with performances and exhibits highlighting the undeniable power and contributions of black people in America.

A local group of children from a D.C.-based dance collaborative performed the step dance Taratibu. Taratibu, a Pan-Afrikan drill, is movement based on the South Afrikan "gum boot" dance. It combines traditional Afrikan dance with contemporary military movements, traditional Negro spirituals, contemporary gospel and traditional Afrikan songs in Kiswahili and Zulu. The movement is military in nature but Afrikan in delivery.

The Tarabitu Youth association is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and teaching African & African-American culture & values through song and dance. Their primary objective is to create a young people's professional touring company and a children's ensemble based in Washington, D.C. The children's company provides aspiring young artists the opportunity to move to a professional company.

The Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery also hosted Dr. Schroder Cherry's puppet show "Can you Spell Harlem." Dr. Cherry, director of education at the Baltimore Museum of Art created his characters and shows to fill an entertainment and cultural void and fulfill a boyhood ambition.

"There are so few African-American puppets available," Cherry said. "Whenever you ask anybody about a puppet, they can name Big Bird, Bert and Ernie, all of the "Sesame Street" characters. They can name some of the classical ones like Pinocchio. But people have never seen black puppets, and I figure there are enough puppets out of other cultures."

"I think it's important for African-Americans to see themselves & I think it's important for non-African-Americans to see African-Americans in different types of roles," Dr. Cherry said.

The Black List: Volume 1 originally premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2008 and again in August of that year on HBO.

The Black List: Volume 1 won the NAACP Spirit award in 2009 for best documentary. "The Black List" profiles prominent African Americans of various professions, disciplines and backgrounds who offer their own stories and insights on the struggles, triumphs, and joys of black life in America. In the process, they redefine the 'black list' for a new generation.

The Black List Exhibition showcases original portraits by renowned photographer Timothy Greenfield-Sanders and will be shown at the National Portrait Gallery until April 22. This group represents today's most accomplished, determined African Americans, whose lives and careers boasts of the brilliance and example of African American triumph and achievement as a standard for people of all races.

Spanning the arts, sports, politics, and business, the accomplishments and the lives of these remarkable individuals displays ideas and experiences which inspire a dynamic conversation about the influence of African Americans in this country and on the global society.

The stunning portraits showcased at The Blacklist exhibition at the Smithsonian Portrait Serena Williams, Slash, Toni Morrison, Keenen Ivory Wayans, Russell Simmons, Al Sharpton, Sean Combs, Susan Rice, Chris Rock, Colin Powell, Raven Simone & many other notable black artist athletes activists & dignitaries.

If you missed Saturday's puppet show and step dance at the Smithsonian, the National Museum of African American History and Culture will feature NPR's 'Tell Me More' with host Michel Martin and Pulitzer Prize-winning author and Harvard law professor Annette Gordon-Reed, who will discuss her books, The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family and Andrew Johnson, at the National Museum of Natural History Monday, Feb. 6, from 7–8 p.m. Gordon-Reed will be also be available for book signing.