Black History Month

Why Black History Month?

Black History Month or African American Heritage Month pays tribute to all the generations of African Americans and Black Americans who struggled to receive full citizenship in the United States and continue to struggle with adversity, prejudice, and racism. In support of Black History Month we have provided downloadable below lists full of books, movies, music, and online resources. Each list is carefully curated by our collection librarians to highlight own voice stories, stories of love, and stories starring important Black Americans throughout history. It all starts with education or re-education!

Scroll to the bottom of the page for downloadable resource lists and resource trackers.

As part of our Read Wider program we have downloadable resource lists and resource trackers.

Downloadable resource lists are full of books, movies, music, and online resources. Each list is carefully curated by our collection librarians to highlight own-voice stories, stories of struggle, and stories of strength.

Resource trackers for kids and teens or adults are a great way to record and highlight your favorite books, movies, music, and online resources for this month. Teens can choose to use the kids and teens or the adult resource tracker. 

What is re-education?

Re-education is "training to develop new behaviors (as attitudes or habits) to replace others that are considered undesirable" (Merriam Webster). It can also be seen as "​the process of teaching somebody to think or behave in a new or different way" (Oxford English Dictionary). Every year we hope to encourage re-education of oneself and inspire empathy through exploring other's stories.

National Brotherhood of Skiers

Founded in 1973 by Ben Finley and Art Clay the National Brotherhood of Skiers (NBS) seeks “to identify and discuss problems and subjects which [are] unique to the black skiing population, ski and socialize”. Today NBS is recognized as the world’s largest Snowsports organization, exposing people of color to winter sports. Every year NBS host summits, bringing all their snow clubs together in one place to play and raise funds for their efforts. Over the past 50 years many NBS summits have been held in Aspen and Snowmass, including the first Black Summit in 1973. (Information from National Brotherhood of Skiers About Page).

List of Staff Recommended Books

Pitkin County Library staff has recommendations for kids, teens, and adults to help get you started on your reading journey! For more resources, check out our downloadable resource lists below.