February is Black History Month

The Employee Assistance Program is committed every February to celebrating Black History Month. Remembering and sharing the stories, struggles and accomplishments of Black Americans and other individuals of African descent is important, and this month-long event always presents a good opportunity for people of all backgrounds to broaden our understanding of those experiences in order to inform on both past injustices, triumphs and present inequities. Listed below are our favorite up to date resources, event calendars, reading lists and more

• The City of Boston’s Equity and Inclusion team hosts this list of City initiatives, events, and other resources celebrating black history month, encouraging involvement in activism, supporting black businesses, and more.
• The Boston Public Library is highlighting a booklist of recommended works on the black experience, as well as a list of events held at city libraries.  
• Boston USA offers a list of local events celebrating the month. It also includes an up to date list of black owned businesses to consider supporting.  
• Boston.com, EventBrite, and All Events also feature aggregate lists of local events, shows, readings and more celebrating Black History Month
• We also recommend exploring Eventbrite’s calendar of free and paid community events throughout the Boston area.
• The Boston Music of African American History offers reserved tours and free virtual tours, and links to further resources on the history of the black abolitionist movement in Boston and more.  Be sure to check out their calendar of hosted educational events.
• We always like to highlight book lists for adults and kids alike. Goodreads shares an excellent list, and Beyond the Bookends offers a list of 30+ recommended books for kids.
• Each year, the Smithsonian offers a list of free and paid digital events, classes, performances and more on Black History Month.

• Black Lives Matter (BLM), an ongoing decentralized social justice movement advocating for racial equity, continues to advocate and work to gather community support within Boston.  The Boston Chapter continues to be active with readings and organizing, click the link to find out more.
• GLAD offers this list of LGBT support networks and resources for gay, lesbian, transgender, and queer people of color.
• AboutBlackBoston.com is a site containing a regularly updated list of support networks for black professionals and individuals looking for online and in-person peer and professional support networks.
• Black Mental Health Alliance is a mental health advocacy service for people of color. Their website includes a link offering to assist in reaching out for local referrals.
• Innopsych is a database to help connect those for searching for mental health counselors of color. 

Please reach out to us at the Employee Assistance Program for further support and resources, or if you wish to share a link. Have a safe and restful month!