Join us for special events throughout February in celebration of Black History Month!

Events

Outta the Muck Screening and Talkback with Director Ira McKinley on February 7

Former Ithaca resident and Upstate New York native McKinley is an award-winning filmmaker whose latest film, Outta the Muck, is set in his current home of South Florida. Outta the Muck explores family, football, and history through an intimate portrait of the Dean family and their own unique narrative of Black achievement. Following the film, McKinley will host a “talkback” with the audience.

Black History Month Screening: Blackkklansman on February 19

Spike Lee's film centers on Ron Stallworth, the first African-American detective to serve in the Colorado Springs Police Department. Determined to make a name for himself, Stallworth bravely sets out on a dangerous mission: infiltrate and expose the Ku Klux Klan.

Tween Book Club Reads My Selma by Willie Mae Brown on February 22

Readers ages 10-14 are welcome to join the Tween Book Club! The February club will read My Selma by Willie Mae Brown, a powerful memoir about the author’s childhood in Selma, Alabama during the early years of the civil rights movement.

Black History Month Screening: Love and Basketball on February 26

Monica (Sanaa Lathan) and Quincy (Omar Epps) are two childhood friends who both aspire to be professional basketball players. Quincy, whose father, Zeke (Dennis Haysbert), plays for the Los Angeles Clippers, is a natural talent and a born leader. Monica is ferociously competitive but sometimes becomes overly emotional on the court. Over the years, the two begin to fall for each other, but their separate paths to basketball stardom threaten to pull them apart.

Author Visit with Willie Mae Brown on February 28

Patrons of all ages are invited to a special visit from Willie May Brown, author of My Selma, a powerful memoir about Brown’s childhood in Selma, Alabama during the early years of the civil rights movement. Brown will read from her book, answer questions from the audience, and sign copies of My Selma. Copies of the book will be available for purchase from Odyssey Bookstore.

Booklists

Nonfiction Book List

Fiction Book List