The sound of a marching band drumline from Shaw University filled the atrium inside North Carolina’s History Museum at the start of the 23rd Annual African American Cultural Festival in Raleigh.
Festival supporter Judith Burrell smiled while listening to musical performances and remarks delivered by organizers.
“This is one of my favorite celebrations of the year, and I have lived all up and down the mid-Atlantic area. I grew up in Boston, New York, D.C. This is the largest and the best celebration to kick off Black History Month,” she said. “I celebrate Black History every day, but this has always been amazing to me. And I’ve been coming for 10 years ever since I moved to Raleigh, North Carolina.”
The organizers received enthusiastic responses when they asked people affiliated with Historically Black Colleges and Universities to shout out when they heard their school’s name announced. One of those HBCUs, North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro, is a sponsor of the festival. The university also sent students from Greensboro to Raleigh with video equipment to document the day’s activities.