Woodson rising Voices oratorical contest APPLICATIONS STILL BEING ACCEPTED
ROLLING ACCEPTANCE
High school students in grades 9–12, first- and second-year college students, along with parents, guardians, educators, and community leaders, are invited to engage with the 2026 Carter G. Woodson “Rising Voices” Oratorical Contest, a distinguished academic and cultural initiative dedicated to cultivating the next generation of historical thinkers and public voices.
Rooted in the intellectual legacy of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, this program elevates youth scholarship while affirming the essential role young people play in stewarding Black history with rigor, clarity, and purpose. Participants are challenged not only to study the past, but to interpret its meaning and relevance for the present and future.
In advance of the competition, students receive structured coaching and scholarly guidance to support rigorous research, analytical writing, and effective public speaking. This year’s essays respond to the national theme set by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), “A Century of Black History Commemorations,” inviting students to reflect on the evolution, significance, and enduring impact of historical remembrance.
The culminating event brings these scholarly efforts to life as students deliver original orations demonstrating historical depth, intellectual discipline, and confident public presentation—hallmarks of emerging leadership and civic engagement.
Learn more about the program and participation details:
https://www.oascla.org/oratorical-contest
An Evening With Authors
Saturday, February 21, 2026
5:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Site: Streaming @ourauthorsstudyclub
Location: Highways Performance Space
1651 18th St, Santa Monica, CA 90404, │Cost: Free
TIME: 5:00 PM: Refreshments 6PM: Discussion 7:00PM: Book Signing and Reception
RSVP: www.oascla.org/rsvp
Our Authors Study Club (OASC), in partnership with the African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA), and co-presenters Highways Performance Space and The Till Artists Collective, presents an intimate evening celebrating the enduring power of Black storytelling.
The program features acclaimed actress and author Denise Nicholas, honored as a Living Legend, alongside author and screenwriter Antwone Fisher in a moderated conversation with an AAFCA representative.
Centering Nicholas’s memoir Finding Home and Fisher’s seminal work Finding Fish, the evening explores storytelling as both testimony and transformation—bridging literature, film, and lived experience while affirming Black history as a living continuum.
Denise Nicholas’s career spans the Civil Rights Movement, groundbreaking performances on television, and award-winning literary achievement. Fisher’s deeply personal narratives of resilience and self-discovery have reshaped contemporary conversations around healing, identity, and authorship.
Together, their voices reflect the power of truth-telling and the responsibility of artists to preserve cultural memory while illuminating paths forward.
Join us for a distinguished gathering where history, artistry, and vision converge.
RSVP: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/special-screening-antwone-fisher-story
Citywide Evening of Healing, Praise, and Celebration
Thursday, February 26, 2026
6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Location: Second Baptist Church
2412 Griffith Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90011│COST: Free
TIME: 6PM
RSVP: www.oascla.org/rsvp
Join us for “A Stand for Healing”, a Citywide Black History Month interdenominational Prayer Service—a sacred evening of remembrance, renewal, and praise.
Guided by the spirit of "A Time to Rise Again: A Sacred Gathering of Memory, Mourning, and Renewal,” this service invites people of every faith and background to come together in unity. As we honor more than a century of Black History commemorations, we also recognize their deeper meaning: the story of Black America is woven into the very heart, growth, and soul of our nation.
This evening creates space for what we so often rush past—collective healing. Together, we will pause to acknowledge loss, to name shared grief from the pandemic, racial and political violence, and the many quiet sorrows carried in our communities. In praise and prayer, we will release what has weighed us down and allow healing to rise among us.
Through song, reflection, and sacred presence, we will transform grief into purpose, mourning into hope, and memory into renewed strength. United across faith traditions, we gather to celebrate resilience, lift one another in love, and recommit ourselves to a kinder, more just, and compassionate future.
All are welcome. Come as you are—and join us in rising together.
ANNUAL Landmarks and Legacies BLACK HISTORY BUS TOUR
Saturday, February 28, 2026
8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Location: Consolidated Board of Realtists
3875 Don Felipe Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90008
COST: Free (RSVP required in advance)
RSVP: www.oascla.org/rsvp
This guided Black History Month tour traces the historical and cultural progress of the African American community in Los Angeles. Participants will visit significant sites that reflect Black achievement, resilience, and community-building across generations.
Highlights include the Biddy Mason Wall, Sugar Hill, The Island, Central Avenue, Leimert Park, and other important locations throughout the city. Together, these sites tell a collective story of migration, creativity, entrepreneurship, and civic life—illustrating how Black Angelenos have shaped the social, cultural, and political landscape of Los Angeles.
This immersive experience invites participants to see the city through a historical lens, connecting place, memory, and legacy while honoring Black history as a living continuum.
ORIGIN AWARD HONORING CHARLES BURNETT
Postponed
Location: TBA
RSVP: www.oascla.org/rsvp
Aligned with the national theme, “A Century of Black History Commemorations,” friends, scholars, and cultural leaders will gather for a special presentation of the Origin Award honoring Charles Burnett, Academy Award–winning filmmaker and visionary storyteller.
Hailed by The New York Times as “the nation’s least-known great filmmaker and most gifted Black director,” Burnett has created a body of work that stands among the most vital contributions to American cinema. Films such as Killer of Sheep, My Brother’s Wedding, To Sleep with Anger, The Glass Shield, and Namibia: The Struggle for Liberation—along with numerous short and documentary works—offer an eloquent and uncompromising chronicle of Black American life, rendered with rare humanism and artistic discipline. In 2017, he received an Academy Honorary Award recognizing his profound influence on cinema and the preservation of cultural memory.
This distinguished evening affirms the enduring power of place, history, and artistic vision—honoring Black legacy not merely as remembrance, but as a living inheritance that continues to shape the nation’s cultural landscape.
Dr. Carter G. Woodson Oratorical Contest
Saturday, March 14, 2026
9:00 AM – 12:00 Noon
RSVP: www.oascla.org/rsvp
Using the annual Black History Month theme, high school students write and deliver original essays that explore the impact of Black history on the past, present, and future of Black society. Participants are encouraged to think deeply and broadly about the theme, engaging history as both reflection and responsibility.
In advance of the competition, students receive coaching and guidance to support their research, writing, and public speaking skills. This year’s essays respond to the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) national theme, “A Century of Black History Commemorations.”
At the culminating event, finalists present their orations—each up to six minutes—before a panel of judges. Students are evaluated on content, presentation, and persuasive impact, and awards include cash prizes and other recognitions.
This program uplifts youth voice and scholarship while affirming the role of young people in carrying Black history forward with insight, confidence, and purpose.
ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION AND POSTER SESSION
Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026
4:00 PM – 8:00 PM
- Poster Round Robin Reception: 4:00 p.m.
- Round Table Discussion: 6:00 p.m.
Location: Afro City Market Place (inside the Crenshaw Mall)
4020 Marlton Los Angeles, CA 90008
SITE: Streaming @ourauthorsstudyclub │ COST: Free
RSVP: Online www.oascla.org/rsvp
INFO: 562.270.4881
In recognition of the national theme, A Century of Black History Commemorations, this year’s Annual Black History Roundtable Panel reflects on the enduring legacy of Dr. Carter G. Woodson and the founders of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, whose work institutionalized the study, teaching, and commemoration of Black history beginning in 1915. From Negro History Week in 1926 to Black History Month 1976, these observances have shaped historical consciousness in the United States and across the global African Diaspora.
Join local scholars: Dr. Anthony Asadullah Samad, Executive Director, Mervyn M. Dymally African American Political & Economic Institute (MDAAPEI), California State University, Dominguez Hills; Dr. Francille Rousan Wilson, associate Professor of American Studies, Dr. Maulana Karenga, Chair Africana Studies, California State University, Long Beach, Executive Director African American Cultural Center and Creator of Pan African Holiday Kwanzaa; Dr. M. Keith Claybrook, incoming Chair of Africana Studies at CSULB ;Dr. Marne Campbell, Chair of African American Studies at Loyola Marymount University and Dr. Donna J. Nicol, Associate Dean of Personnel and Curriculum and professor of history, California State University Long Beach.
Scholars, students, and community members are invited to attend, engage in dialogue, and participate in this meaningful exploration of Black history and its enduring impact. Discuss emerging thought and research with current students
SPONSORS: Institutional Sponsor, Mervyn M. Dymally African American Political & Economic Institute (MDAAPEI), Mayor Karen Bass; Dr. Lura Daniels-Ball, President, Our Authors Study Club, Inc.; Heather Hutt, Councilmember, Tenth District; the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA); Cookie Parker, Chair, Yes2Jobs, Honorary and General Chair, 2026 Black History Month Committee
Opening Ceremonies Celebration
Wednesday, February 4, 2026
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM
- 9:00 AM - Part 1 -
Bridge Art Exhibition
Presented by the Office of Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson
- 10:00 AM - Part 2 -
“Voices of the City: Los Angeles City Council Honors Distinguished Leaders”
A special City Council program honoring the 2026 Living Legend Honoree, Denise Nicholas, Actress and Author (Freshwater Road, Finding Home); and the 2026 Hall of Fame Honorees, Antwone Fisher, Author (Finding Fish) and Founder, Glenville House Press, and DMA Anderson, Entrepreneur and CEO, Korgi Tech.
This program also includes the unveiling of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) national Black History Month theme, “A Century of Black History Commemorations,” and the introduction of the 2026 Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) Black History Guide and Cover Artist.
In honoring this year’s theme, we salute the past and present members of Our Authors Study Club, Inc., who first partnered with the City of Los Angeles and the Mayor in 1950, marking 76 years of collaboration in celebrating Black achievement, resilience, and cultural legacy—while looking ahead to inspire future generations to continue keeping Black history alive and vibrant.
[Read the full executive summary of the 2026 theme at asalh.org.]
- 12:00 PM - Part 3 -
Community Reception & Celebration
City Hall West Forecourt
Sponsored by Council Districts 8, 9, 10, and 15
LOCATIONS:
The Bridge │ City Hall Council Chambers │ City Hall West Forecourt
Los Angeles City Hall
200 North Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
COST: Free
RSVP: www.oascla.org/rsvp
2025 Events Archive
2025 Annual Scholars' Brunch - 10:30 AM | Saturday, July 26, 2025 | Ability First, 8090 Crenshaw Blv
2025 Annual Scholars' Brunch - 10:30 AM | Saturday, July 26, 2025 | Ability First, 8090 Crenshaw Blv
2025 Annual Scholars' Brunch - 10:30 AM | Saturday, July 26, 2025 | Ability First, 8090 Crenshaw Blv
Our Authors Study Club, Inc. (OASC) in partnership LA METRO,
SEIU-USWW, BHERC
Excitement is in the air! Get ready to be part of something extraordinary at Our Authors Study Club, Inc's Annual Scholarship Brunch Saturday, July 26th, 2025 10:30 AM.
Join us for an inspiring celebration of academic achievement and community impact. Escape the summer heat and connect with purpose at our intimate annual scholarship brunch. This relaxed gathering offers a unique opportunity to meet the bright minds we're supporting and witness firsthand the incredible progress of our scholars.
What to Expect:
- Meet Our Scholars - Connect directly with scholarship recipients and hear their inspiring stories of growth and achievement
- Casual Networking - Build meaningful relationships in a warm, laid-back outdoor atmosphere that encourages genuine conversation
- Delicious Refreshments - Enjoy a thoughtfully prepared light lunch paired with an array of cool, refreshing beverages perfect for the season
- Inspiring Updates - Discover the real impact of your support through personal stories and progress updates
Attire: Casual-chic -- think effortless elegance that's comfortable for a relaxed summer gathering.
This isn't just another networking event - it's a chance to see your investment in education come to life through the achievements of remarkable young people. Come ready to be inspired, refreshed, and reminded of the powerful difference we're making together in our community.
Reserve your spot today for this exclusive opportunity to celebrate our scholars' success in an intimate, welcoming setting.
Saturday, July 26th, 2025
10:30 AM - 1:00 PM
Ability First - Harry Mier Center
8090 Crenshaw Blvd.
Inglewood, CA 90305
Note: There is limited parking on the lot.
Free | RSVP Requested
Open to the public • Light refreshments • Books and history memorabilia Available for purchase. Proceeds benefit the OASC Scholarship Fund.
100th Anniversary of the Pullman Porters Union – The Rise of the Black Middle Class
2025 Annual Scholars' Brunch - 10:30 AM | Saturday, July 26, 2025 | Ability First, 8090 Crenshaw Blv
2025 Annual Scholars' Brunch - 10:30 AM | Saturday, July 26, 2025 | Ability First, 8090 Crenshaw Blv
NEW DATE! Saturday, June 21, 2025
Reception: 1 PM
2 to 4 PM Program/Film/Discussion
Honoring Director Robert Townsend
OASC Hall of Fame Transformative Torchbearer Award
Join us with BHERC for the Juneteenth Jubilee. 100th Anniversary of the Pullman Porters Union – The Rise of the Black Middle Class and fuel for Civil Rights
LOCATION: Los Angeles Public Library
Mark Taper Auditorium
630 W. 5th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90071
COST: Free to the Public (limited seating, RSVP suggested)
INFO LINE: 213.770.0399
RSVP: www.oascla.org/rsvp
Sponsored By: The Black Hollywood Education and Resource Center
OUR Sponsors & PARTNERS
