The McGill University Libraries are celebrating Black History Month at McGill by showcasing research and creative work of Black scholars and artists from our collection. Find all these resources and more in your Libraries.
*Please note that access to some items may be restricted to McGill users and the VPN may be required for off-campus access.
Reading Recommendations from the Libraries’ Collections
We have curated book displays to view in person in several of our Library locations, including:
- Afrofuturist literary works (Redpath Library)
- Research articles by Black McGill scientists (Redpath Library)
- Black History Month: New books at the Music Library (Marvin Duchow Music Library)
If you can’t visit the Libraries in person, you may follow the links above to see the list of titles on display.
Online lists and book displays
You can also view a titles list from Schulich Library of Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, and Engineering on the topics of Black consumer health and combating anti-Black racism in Medicine.
The outreach team at Humanities and Social Studies Library continues to update the Black History Month virtual display, bringing from within our collections, titles both old and new, literary masterpieces, and contemporary podcasts. Check out all related book displays:
- Black History Month Virtual Display
- Black History Month on Libby
- Black History on Libby
- Black and Indigenous Racialization & Resistance
- Works of fiction by BIPOC authors
- Diverse Fantasy & Science Fiction
Roy States Black History Collection
From our Rare Books & Special Collections, we are pleased to highlight the Roy States Black History Collection, materials collected by States, a Black activist, amateur historian and McGill staff member who as a teenager began a lifelong pursuit of collecting books and other information about Black people in history and contemporary society. Also available is an extended biographical sketch of the collector.
New Acquisitions
Thanks to funds received as part of McGill’s Action Plan to Address Anti-Black Racism 2020-2025, the Marvin Duchow Music Library is in the process of adding to its collection over 220 musical scores of works written by Black composers. The goal of the initiative is to amplify black voices while addressing Schulich School of Music teaching and research needs. The new additions include a mix of instrumental and vocal selections as well as a variety of ensemble types, providing opportunities for all McGill students and faculty to access and use these materials for study and performance.
The new scores also include strong representation of works written by composers who are Black women, such as Consuela Lee, Tania León, and Nkeiru Okoye. This initiative connects with the Libraries’ 2024 Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Action Plan in that it contributes to the work of inviting under-heard and under-studied voices into our collections.
Also funded by McGill’s Action Plan to Address Anti-Black Racism 2020-2025, this winter the McGill Visual Arts Collection will welcome the addition of the diptych Marasa (2023) by Black Haitian artist Clovis Alexandre Desvarieux. Desvarieux is a rising, mid-career artist who was born in Haiti and now based in Montreal. His bright and bold abstract paintings are influenced by Haitian mythologies and history. We expect to install Marasa in public space in the McLennan Library for the McGill and Montreal communities to enjoy.
Libguides
- African History
- African Studies
- Anti-Black Racism
- Black Canadian Studies
- Black, Indigenous, people of colour (BIPOC) musicians
- HIST 201: Modern African History
- HIST 327: Age of the American Revolution
- HIST 366: History of Haiti
- HIST 397: Canada: Migration & Ethnicity
- HIST 574: Topics in U.S. History: African North Americans and Citizenship
- HIST 598: Topics in Modern U.S. History: Voting Rights History since 1865
- Jazz
- Middle East, North Africa & South Asia History
- PHIL 327: Philosophy of Race
- POLI 359: Rivalries in the Middle East and North Africa
- U.S. History
- World History
Video Streaming Services
- Kanopy
- Docuseek2 Black History Month Sampler (documentary films)
- Criterion on Demand
- National Film Board’s Black Communities in Canada
- Qwest.tv (dedicated to jazz, soul, funk, and world music)
Do you have favourite resources that are not listed? Please let us know!
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