Stop By the African Burial Ground for These Free Black History Month Events

This Black History Month, the African Burial Ground National Monument (290 Broadway) is offering up free programming for all. On three Saturdays in February, visitors can experience various cultural craft demonstrations, presentations, readings and rituals to celebrate and honor those buried at the National Monument. Activities include jewelry-making, African mask-making and face painting, among others.

Each day of programming will include a libation ceremony ritual (the pouring of a liquid as an offering to ancestors) performed by Ndigo Washington. J.D. Webster will also be on hand to sing “Lift Every Voice and Sing” in the park’s theater.

The African Burial Ground is the oldest and largest known excavated burial ground in North America for both free and enslaved Africans. An estimated 95 percent of Africans from the late 17th through the 18th centuries were enslaved to do the painstaking labor of building New York. Today, the site honors those buried there and those who fought for the national protection of this site. The Black History Month celebrations will take place on February 10, 17 and 24 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Learn more about the free events here.