The Alachua County Library District will celebrate Black History Month with speakers at three events throughout the month of February.
Author Yasmin Angoe will speak at the first event at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 7, at the Headquarters Library in Gainesville.
The other two speakers are Hawah Ezell at 3 p.m. on Feb. 13, at Cone Park Branch and Dr. Alyssa Cole at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 21, at Tower Road Branch.
For a full list of programs happening at the Library District for Black History Month, visit: www.aclib.us/BlackHistoryMonth
Program title: Black History Month: Author Visit with Yasmin Angoe
Location: Headquarters Library (401 E University Ave., Gainesville)
Date and Time: Saturday, Feb. 7, at 2 p.m.
Meet Angoe, an award-nominated author of the Nena Knight book series, during a book discussion and author talk.
Angoe is the Anthony Award-nominated author of the critically acclaimed Nena Knight series, including “Her Name is Knight,” “They Come at Knight,” and “It Ends with Knight.”
Angoe’s first work of domestic psychological suspense, “Not What She Seems,” was featured in Publishers Weekly, The Root, Kirkus Reviews, and Writers Digest.
She is the recipient of the 2020 Eleanor Taylor Bland Award for Emerging Writers of Color.
This event is co-sponsored by the Opinionated Ladies Book Club.
Program title: Black History Month: Hawah Ezell, WCJB-TV News Anchor
Location: Cone Park Branch (2801 E University Ave., Gainesville)
Date and Time: Friday, Feb. 13, at 3 p.m.
Local news anchor Ezell will discuss her path to journalism and her experiences working at WCJB-TV20.
Ezell joined the news team at WCJB-TV20 as a reporter in January of 2024, and 9 months later became the Morning Edition reporter and is now also a fill-in anchor. She graduated from Florida International University in December of 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in digital broadcasting with a concentration in criminal justice. She has a passion for giving a voice to the voiceless.
If you are an aspiring storyteller seeking insight into television journalism, this program will be an informative experience.
Program title: Black History Month: Health Activism in 1900-40s Kansas City
Location: Tower Road Branch (3020 SW 75 St., Gainesville)
Date and Time: Saturday, Feb. 21, at 3 p.m.
Join us for a captivating presentation from Cole, an assistant professor in African American Studies at the University of Florida. Cole specializes in the intersections of history, health activism, and Black communities in the Midwest.
Cole will discuss her current work titled, “Movement before the Movement: Black Women’s Health Activism in Kansas City, 1900-1940,” which explores the roles of Black women who advocated for health equity during the early 20th century.