Black History Month is a time to learn, reflect and celebrate the many accomplishments and achievements Black people have contributed to our history. We’ve put together a list of ways we can deepen our knowledge of Black history and celebrate the lives, culture and contributions of Black people in our communities and beyond.
The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) has announced that this year’s theme is African Americans and Labor. Click here if you would like to learn more from the Association about the theme and the background of Black History Month.
Here are some ways to celebrate and observe Black History Month:
- Learn more about notable figures and unsung heroes in Black history and their contributions.
- Support Black-owned businesses and restaurants—some great options are included in the lists below.
- Visit a Black museum/cultural institution or historical site. (Or visit virtually!)
- The National Museum of African American History & Culture has additional resources to explore here.
- Celebrate Black literature: Buy books from Black authors.
- Detroit Public Library has a list of books to read this month as well as books to inspire children.
- East Lansing Public Library offers their top picks for adults and teens in celebration of Black History Month.
- East Lansing Public Library also provides a list for younger readers as well as adults.
- Bonus: You can also support a Black-owned business at the same time.
- Black Stone Bookstore & Cultural Center | Ypsilanti
- Comma Bookstore & Social Hub | Flint
- Detroit Book City | Southfield
- Nandi’s Knowledge Cafe | Highland Park
- Socialight Society | Lansing
- Source Booksellers | Detroit
- We Are LIT | Grand Rapids
- Dedicate time to learning more about racial equity.
- Listen to podcasts by Black producers and creators.
- Learn more about Black music history.
- Donate to Black organizations and nonprofits.
- Watch a documentary, movie or TV show on Black history or culture.
- Advocate to change policy.
And you can also attend local Black History Month events! We’ve got a growing list of events and activities that are taking place right here across Michigan. Check back often, as we’ll be adding to this list as we hear of events:
Statewide
Feb. 1-28: WOODTV – List: 2025 Black History Month events and activities in West Michigan
(Includes events in Grand Rapids, Muskegon, Lansing, Kalamazoo, Holland, Battle Creek)
Detroit and Southeast Michigan
Feb. 1-28: The Detroit News – Dining calendar: Black History Month food events and more
Feb. 1-28: Detroit – Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History
Feb. 1-28: Detroit – Black Scroll Network History & Tours
Feb. 1: Party with a Tee & Detroit Book City – 3rd Annual Black History Book Fair w/The Indie Authors 2025
Feb. 1: Detroit Institute of Arts – The Symbol of the Unconquered
Feb. 1: Knapp | Detroit Public Library – Black History Month Celebration
Feb. 1: Silver Lake Church Of The Nazarene – DayBreak Empowerment Black History Month Film Festival
Feb. 3: Eastern Michigan University – The Future of Black Politics in America
Feb. 3: Duffield | Detroit Public Library – Ask a Tech-Black History Google Images
Feb. 3: Elmwood Park | Detroit Public Library – Black History Month Storytime
Feb. 5: Hubbard | Detroit Public Library – Story Squad: Black History Makers
Feb. 6: Lincoln | Detroit Public Library – Lincoln Branch Celebrates The Harlem Renaissance!
Feb. 7: Actors Studio at Pathways | Street Songs and the Storyteller
Feb. 8: Main | Detroit Public Library – Freedom Frontier: Detroit Stories of Abolition and the Underground Railroad
Feb. 8: Duffield | Detroit Public Library – Redeeming Soul Food
Feb. 8: Elmwood Park | Detroit Public Library – Ivory Williams, Storyteller
Opening Feb. 8: Detroit Historical Society – 10 Years Back, 10 Years Forward: Black Bottom Archives
Feb. 14: Oakland Community College – Black History Month Buffet 2025
Feb 15-16: Michigan Central Station – Great Migrations with Michigan Central and Detroit Public Television
Feb. 16: Detroit Institute of Arts – The 32nd Annual Alain Locke Awards
Feb. 17: Elmwood Park | Detroit Public Library – Black History Month Storytime
Feb. 20: Bamboo Royal Oak – Black-Owned Business Market
Feb. 21: Southfield – Southfield Celebrates Black History Month: The Secret Society of Twisted Storytellers
Feb 22-23: Michigan Central Station – Great Migrations with Michigan Central and Detroit Public Television
Feb. 22: Ernest T. Ford Recreation Center | Detroit Book City’s 9th Annual African American Family Book Expo & Read-In 2025
Feb. 23: Detroit Institute of Arts – Hair Wars Demo
Flint
Feb. 1-28: Flint Institute of Arts – Events
Feb. 5: Gloria Coles Flint Public Library – Flint & Genesee Young Professionals Presents Black History Month Panel Discussion
Grand Rapids and West Michigan
Feb. 1-28: Experience Grand Rapids has a great list of events, businesses and celebrations for Black History Month in Grand Rapids
Feb. 1-28: Experience Grand Rapids also has a list of Black-Owned Restaurants in Grand Rapids
Feb. 1-28: The Henry Ford – Celebrate Black History & Black Futures
Feb. 1-28: Grand Rapids Public Library – Black History Month Storytimes
Main | West Leonard | West Side | Madison Square | Seymour | Van Belkum | Yankee Clipper | Ottawa Hills
Feb. 18: Main | Grand Rapids Public Library – Tracing the Steps | African American Women During the Progressive Era in Grand Rapids
Feb. 21-22: A Glimpse of Africa – A Weekend of Black History Celebration
Feb. 22: Main | Grand Rapids Public Library – Black History Live with Culture Queen
Kalamazoo and Southwest Michigan
Feb. 1-28: MLive – 10 ways to celebrate Black History Month in Kalamazoo in 2025
Lansing
Feb. 1-28: Lansing.org – African American Culture
Feb. 1-28: Lansing Foodies has dining suggestions with this list of Black-Owned Businesses
Feb. 1-28: Lansing Mom provides a list of Black-Owned Businesses In + Around Lansing
Feb 1-28: MSU Broad Art Museum – Farmland: Food, Justice, and Sovereignty
Opens Feb. 4: MSU Museum – Techno: The Rise of Detroit’s Machine Music
Feb. 24: Lansing Community College – Black Voices, Bold Narratives – A Read-Aloud Experience
Muskegon
Feb. 1-28: Hackley Public Library – Black History Month 2025
Is there another event you’d like to see listed? Email Emily Jorgensen at ejorgensen@mlpp.org.
Jay Cutler joined the League in March 2026 as the Kids Count Senior Data Analyst, where he collects, analyzes, and prepares data for Kids Count in Michigan.
Danielle Taylor-Basemore joined the League as the Development Data and Stewardship Coordinator in June 2025. She brings with her five years of nonprofit experience with a special focus on community engagement, data visualization and strategic programming. Prior to joining the League, Danielle served as the Business District, Safety, and Digital Manager at Jefferson East, Inc.
Scott Preston is a Senior Policy Analyst with the Michigan League for Public Policy, where he leads the organization’s immigration and criminal justice reform portfolios. In the three years prior to joining the League, Scott facilitated the Southeast Michigan Refugee Collaborative and managed a small business economic development program at Global Detroit. His work included launching Michigan’s first Refugee Film Festival and building on a trusted connector model that linked marginalized communities with crucial resources. Scott’s work at the League is informed by his background in journalism and research. He spent four years covering the Syrian refugee crisis in the Middle East for publications such as The Economist, and later worked with unaccompanied refugee minors through Samaritas. Scott holds a master’s degree in international migration and public policy from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Kate Powers joined the League as the Chief Development Officer in February 2025. Prior to joining the League, Kate held leadership positions at many Michigan nonprofit organizations, most recently serving as the COO and Chief Development Officer of Ele’s Place. Kate has spent the bulk of her career in fundraising, with a short stint in the state Legislature as a legislative aide to members in both chambers. Kate is a graduate of Michigan State University’s James Madison College with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Relations and has a certificate in fundraising management from the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University. Additionally, Kate served on the East Lansing Public Schools Board of Education and is a past President of the Junior League of Lansing. In her free time, she enjoys traveling with her husband and her son and saving outfit of the day and home decor ideas on Pinterest. 
Nicholas Hess joined the League as the Fiscal Policy Analyst in September of 2024. In this role, Nicholas focuses on tax policy, government revenue, and their impact on working families and racial equity, including the effects of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC). Nicholas values the role that judicious fiscal policy can play in the improvement of people’s lives and the economy, alleviating inequities along the way.
Audrey Matusz joined the League as the Visual Communications Specialist in September 2024. She supports the team with implementing social media strategies and brainstorming creative ways to talk about public policy. She brings with her nearly a decade of experience in producing digital products for evidence-based social justice initiatives. 
Jacob Kaplan 
Donald Stuckey 
Alexandra Stamm 
Amari Fuller
Mikell Frey is a communications professional with a passion for using the art of storytelling to positively impact lives. She strongly believes that positive social change can be inspired by the sharing of data-driven information coupled with the unique perspectives of people from all walks of life across Michigan, especially those who have faced extraordinary barriers. 
Yona Isaacs (she/hers) is an Early Childhood Data Analyst for the Kids Count project. After earning her Bachelor of Science in Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience at the University of Michigan, she began her career as a research coordinator in pediatric psychiatry using data to understand the impacts of brain activity and genetics on children’s behavior and mental health symptoms. This work prompted an interest in exploring social determinants of health and the role of policy in promoting equitable opportunities for all children, families, and communities. She returned to the University of Michigan to complete her Masters in Social Work focused on Social Policy and Evaluation, during which she interned with the ACLU of Michigan’s policy and legislative team and assisted local nonprofit organizations in creating data and evaluation metrics. She currently serves as a coordinator for the Michigan Center for Youth Justice on a project aiming to increase placement options and enhance cultural competency within the juvenile justice system for LGBTQIA+ youth. Yona is eager to put her data skills to work at the League in support of data-driven policies that advocate for equitable access to healthcare, education, economic security, and opportunity for 0-5 year old children. In her free time, she enjoys tackling DIY house projects and trying new outdoor activities with her dog.
Rachel Richards rejoined the League in December 2020 as the Fiscal Policy Director working on state budget and tax policies. Prior to returning to the League, she served as the Director of Legislative Affairs for the Michigan Department of Treasury, the tax policy analyst and Legislative Director for the Michigan League for Public Policy, and a policy analyst and the Appropriations Coordinator for the Democratic Caucus of the Michigan House of Representatives. She brings with her over a decade of experience in policies focused on economic opportunity, including workforce issues, tax, and state budget.
Simon Marshall-Shah joined the Michigan League for Public Policy as a State Policy Fellow in August 2019. His work focuses on state policy as it relates to the budget, immigration, health care and other League policy priorities. Before joining the League, he worked in Washington, D.C. at the Association for Community Affiliated Plans (ACAP), providing federal policy and advocacy support to nonprofit, Medicaid health plans (Safety Net Health Plans) related to the ACA Marketplaces as well as Quality & Operations.
Renell Weathers, Michigan League for Public Policy (MLPP) Community Engagement Consultant. As community engagement consultant, Renell works with organizations throughout the state in connecting the impact of budget and tax policies to their communities. She is motivated by the belief that all children and adults deserve the opportunity to achieve their dreams regardless of race, ethnicity, religion or economic class.
Emily Jorgensen joined the Michigan League for Public Policy in July 2019. She deeply cares about the well-being of individuals and families and has a great love for Michigan. She is grateful that her position at the League enables her to combine these passions and work to help promote policies that will lead to better opportunities and security for all Michiganders.
Megan Farnsworth joined the League’s staff in December 2022 as Executive Assistant. Megan is driven by work that is personally fulfilling, and feels honored to help support the work of an organization that pushes for more robust programming and opportunities for the residents of our state. She’s excited and motivated to gain overarching knowledge of the policies and agendas that the League supports.
