We’re excited to share the opening event of this weekend’s Black Family History Lab: a free screening of “Our Founding Chefs,” a locally filmed episode of the acclaimed Netflix series, High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America. The episode discusses the resounding impact of founding-era African American chefs on the country’s palate, including that of James Hemings, a renowned chef enslaved by Thomas Jefferson. The event […]

Back for 2024, this three-day Black Family History Lab is the latest edition of “Memories Matter,” reimagined as a weekend-long community history gathering. The Lab invites local residents to connect with family history experts on how to best save family treasures (i.e. photographs, letters, books, quilts, stories, and more), sit for professional family portraits, attend […]

For the final season of August Wilson, and in keeping with our mission as an organization to “promote a greater understanding of the contributions of African Americans” and provide a space and place for Black artists to create unapologetically, we have planned a week long symposium to be held at the close of our season […]

Our series is named after Evelyn L. Barbour, who passed in 2014 at the age of 78 after a short illness. She attended the Jefferson School and was among the first graduating class Jackson P. Burley High School. She was an alumnus of Virginia Union University and the University of Virginia School of Education. She […]

Siri Russell, the Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the University of Virginia’s School of Data Science will sit in conversation with Dr. Andrea Douglas on the JSAAHC Stage on April 25 beginning at 6:00 p.m. They will discuss the obstacles Black bodies face when they choose diversity work. This talk is the […]

Eugene “Gus” Newport is a social justice activist, grassroots leader, community and economic development consultant, and has worked for several foundations and served on the faculties of MIT, Yale, UC Santa Cruz, U Mass Boston, and Portland State. He was the two-term mayor of Berkeley, CA (1979–1986). During his tenure he served on the advisory […]

Join Niya Bates (PhD Candidate at Princeton University, Founding Member of DEC-UVA), James French (Montpelier Foundation Board Chair), and Matthew Reaves (Director of Archaeology, Montpelier) as they discuss the Rubric as a Framework for Engaging with Descendants of Enslaved Laborers. Moderator: Justin G. Reid (Cultural Organizer, Griffin Blvd Archives) Transportation will be provided with buses […]

Dr. Avina Ross and Dr. Andrea Douglas discuss the tumultuous lived experiences of Black bodied people working in DEI spaces in which the institutions are not ready or willing to do the work. The talk, which begins at 6pm, will be broadcast simultaneously on our Facebook and YouTube pages.

In celebration of Black History Month, the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce & JSAAHC  will showcase thought-provoking short talks on Black entrepreneurship and workforce/talent development. The event will be held in JSAAHC Auditorium from 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Speakers will include: Jesse Brookins, Director of Equity & Inclusion, […]

On Saturday, January 28 at 3 p.m. A’Lelia Bundles, author of On Her Own Ground: The Life and Times of Madam C.J. Walker, will speak followed by a book signing. A’Lelia is the founder of the Madam Walker Family Archives and brand historian for MADAM by Madam C. J. Walker, a line of hair care products developed in partnership with […]