US Embassy Celebrates Black History Month

The United States Embassy on Friday organized an event marking this year's Black History Month. The Black History Month, celebrated every February is dedicated to recount the achievements of African-Americans who stood up against slavery.

Speaking at the event held at the US Embassy, the envoy of the United States to The Gambia, His Excellency, Mr. Barry Wells said "February is significant in American calendar, as it is the month set aside in honor of transformational achievements by African Americans in all walks of American life, from Martin Luther King Jr. an icon of the Civil Rights Movement to the historic election and inauguration of the first African American president of the United States of America Barack H. Obama.

According to him, though blacks have reached the highest pedestal of achievement, there are hundreds of thousands of African Americans whose contributions have never been acknowledged and are lost in the history of the United States. “It is for them we celebrate,” he remarked.

Speaking further, the American ambassador said that February was chosen because of the historical events that had taken place in the month such as the 15th Amendment which gave Blacks the right to vote, and also the birthdays of former President Abraham Lincoln and abolitionist and former slave Frederick Douglas.

He hailed Alex Hailey's contribution for the awakening of 'Diasporans' to the horror of slavery.

“Alex Hailey's epic book 'Roots' has served over the last thirty years as a symbol of the slave trade and the suffering endured by many Africans who were enslaved during that time” he said, adding that through Hailey's work many Black Americans know about the history of The Gambia and have dreamt of paying homage to the country and witness a part of their own history.

“I myself have been moved during my trip to Juffereh by the memories that remain in that village and on James Island. Many lives were lost during the slave trade and places like Juffereh, James Island, Albreda and Georgetown have significant memorial sites dedicated to their memories.

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