It’s nearing the end of Black History Month, so while our blog post topics may broaden, we’d like to leave you with some books by Black Americans that have made an impact on the Durham Tech community to read beyond just February because Black history is American history all year long.

Keep reading for Durham Tech’s favorite reads by Black American authors–fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, environmental justice, social justice, criminal justice, economics, fantasy, and finance–, and for a documentary exploring if Black History Month accomplishes what it sets out to do.

We would like to acknowledge there is frequent debate about the value of heritage months and if it harms through othering more than helps through highlighting underrecognized groups in the historical narrative.

To explore this topic a little more deeply as it relates to Black History Month, check out documentarian Shukree Hassan Tilghman’s More Than a Month (2012), which “explores what history months tell us about race and equality in the US” through a cross-country campaign to end Black History Month.

Tilghman reflects on his documentary ten years later along with others in NPR’s article “Why Does Black History Month Matter?” (2022)