Commemorate black history

February is black history month. A good way to educate yourself on an aspect of black history is the current exhibit of the Oakland Museum of California: All power to the people: Black Panthers at 50.

Unity is the solution poster from the Black Panthers at 50 exhibit at the Oakland Museum of CaliforniaUntil February 26th this will show original documents of the panthers, never seen photos, and the cultural component of the movement. 

It was surprising to me that the movement was composed by 2/3 of woman, who also held leadership positions.  In an early draft of their program it showed that they thought about a basic income, which is a much discussed topic all around the world right now.

When I visited on Super Bowl Sunday I hoped to be there pretty much by myself. Due to this highly popular exhibit and the fact that on every first Sunday of the month the entry is free (they ask for donations), I had to wait for about half an hour in line.

Besides the Black Panther exhibit I also saw: Out of the box: The rise of sneaker culture. I never thought that sneakers could be so interesting! The story of Carl Lewis’s shoes or a sole making Obama prints is very cool.

Sign to warn drivers that immigrants might cross, at the Oakland Museum of CaliforniaTo complete my visit I went to see the Gallery of California history exhibit. Very well organized time periods of Californian history. What struck me was the timeliness of their showing of the Mexican border and the last piece of the exhibit some food for thought about the Dakota Native Americans.

There are also the art and science exhibits that I did not have time to visit.

Opening hours:

Mon – Tue: closed, Wed – Thur: 11am – 5pm, Fri: 11am – 9pm, Sat – Sun: 10am – 6pm

How do you celebrate black history?