Friends & Foundation of the Rochester Public Library

Black History and DEI programs, resources

PREVIOUS EXHIBITS

The Museum Of UnCut Funk brought the Funky Turns 50: Black Character Revolution Firsts poster exhibit to Central Library’s Local History & Genealogy Division in 2024.

Watch the video of the event held at Central Library with Co-Founders and Co-Curators of Funky Turns 50 — Loreen Williamson and Pamela Thomas. Williamson and Thomas discuss how memories of watching Saturday morning cartoons during the 1970’s led to the development of the historic traveling exhibit highlighting the first positive Black animation characters in television history. (February 2024)

Central Library celebrated the National Museum of African American History and Culture with an Online Smithsonian Poster Exhibition (February 2021)

GUIDE TO BLACK HISTORY COLLECTIONS

In February 2023, the Rochester Regional Library Council (RRLC) published this online guide, which showcases black history collections held by libraries, archives, museums, and historical societies throughout the City of Rochester and Monroe County. The online resource is being continually updated.

Funding for this project came from a Vitality Grant for Preserving Historical Assets received by the Friends & Foundation of the Rochester Public Library from the Rochester Area Community Foundation.

UNDERSTANDING BLACK EXPERIENCES

In 2020, when challenging events gripped the nation and ushered in a new era of reckoning, a diverse team of Library and FFRPL staff collaborated to curate Understanding Black Experiences, a collection of print and digital materials for the community.
- View the section on books and e-books
- View the section on historical context
- View the section on community resources
- View the section on film and the arts
Monroe County Library System’s Racial Equity & Justice Initiative Team created the Black Lives Matter: An Anti-Racism Resource Page

LIBRARY RESOURCES RELATED TO DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Check Library availability for the book “I Have A Dream: Writings and Speeches that Changed the World” by Martin Luther King, Jr.
Check availability throughout the Monroe County Library System for books and other resources related to MLK, Jr.

SELECT RESOURCES FROM CENTRAL LIBRARY’S REYNOLDS MEDIA CENTER

DIGITAL COLLECTIONS

Hoopla: Black History Month

ARCHIVED BLACK HISTORY AND DEI PROGRAMS (HIGHLIGHTS)

Books Sandwiched In review of Hip Hop is History written by Questlove (April 15, 2025)
- View/download the pdf of notes from the April 15 review
- View additional info. on Quincy Jones & Hip-Hop
Books Sandwiched In review of James, written by Percival Everett (March 18, 2025)
Books Sandwiched In review of Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden written by Ruth Whippman (October 1, 2024)
Book Talk at Central Library with author Sidney Morrison, Frederick Douglass: A Novel (September 28, 2024)
Books Sandwiched In review of Thicker Than Water: A Memoir written by Kerry Washington (April 16, 2024)
Book Talk at Central Library with author Victor Luckerson, Built From the Fire: The Epic Story of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, America’s Black Wall Street (April 6, 2024)
Uncovering African American Stories and Genealogy: Visiting the International African American Museum and Exploring Connections, part of the VISIONS OF AMERICA: All Stories, All People, All Places series, produced collaboratively with the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). (February 2024)
Exploring Identity, Love, and Being Black in America in Fiction Writing: A Conversation with Award-Winning Author Jason Mott (February 2024)
- RPL’s Online Author Talks are sponsored by FFRPL.
Tuesday Topics highlighted Central’s Archive of Black History and Culture Project (February 2023)
Tuesday Topics, “Repairing the Historical Record through Community Collaboration” highlighted Central’s Archive of Black History and Culture (February 2022)
- Watch the 25-minute video referenced in the talk: Clarissa Uprooted: Youth and Elders Uncover the Story of Black Rochester.
Books Sandwiched In review of Under the Skin: The Hidden Toll of Racism on American Lives and on the Health of Our Nation written by Linda Villarosa (Fall 2022)
- View/download Dr. Clark’s PowerPoint Presentation

Jason Mott’s talk at Central Library about his novel, Hell of a Book, was part of Rochester Reads, presented by Writers & Books and Sponsored by FFRPL (November 2022)
Books Sandwiched In review of How the word is passed: A Reckoning with The History of Slavery Across America written by Clint Smith (Spring 2022)
Tuesday Topics, “Preserving Rochester’s Black History at Central Library” (Winter 2021)
Books Sandwiched In review of Opal’s Greenwood Oasis written by Najah Amatullah Hylton and Quraysh Ali Lansana and Unspeakable written by Carole Boston Weatherford (Fall 2021)
Books Sandwiched In review of A Promised Land written by Barack Obama (Spring 2021)
Books Sandwiched In review of Becoming written by Michelle Obama (Spring 2019)
Dr. Ibram X. Kendi’s talk, How to be an Antiracist, presented by The Frederick Douglass Family Initiatives and sponsored by RPL and FFRPL(2019)
- Thanks to Dr. Kendi for allowing us to make this content available for free.
Books Sandwiched In review of When They Call You A Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir written by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha Bandele (Fall 2018)