The ISU campus will host several extra events this February because Black History Month coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education court decision.

The ruling made “separate but equal” discrimination illegal.

Ranging from lectures by noted authors and politicians to a soul food tasting in LeBaron Hall, many student organizations will use a vast array of functions to help spread the ideas of racial harmony at Iowa State during February.

Sarai Arnold, junior in biology and president of the Black Student Alliance, said Black History Month is an opportune time to promote unity and education on campus.

“This is a time for us to really celebrate our heritage,” Arnold said.

George Jackson, assistant dean of the Graduate College and president of the Ames chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said he believes in the positive message of these programs.

“Black History Month gives America, and the world, a chance to pause and reflect on how diverse we really are as a country,” he said. “I’m hoping it reaffirms the numerous contributions that so many people have made for this cause.”

Ashley Holloway, senior in community and regional planning and vice president of the Black Student Alliance, said he thinks Black History Month is a good chance for his group to reach the public.

“Although we try to celebrate black history year round, of course this is an opportunity to shine, to truly show our contributions to American history,” Holloway said.

The alliance isn’t the only campus organization holding events geared toward African-American heritage. The College of Family and Consumer Sciences and the Ames chapter of the NAACP are also holding events this month.

The College of Family and Consumer Sciences has multiple events planned for the month. In a program titled, “Reflections: Faces of the new Millennium,” the college will feature a presentation by children’s book author Anita Rollins, program coordinator for the institute for physical research and technology, at 11 a.m. Feb. 19 in LeBaron Lounge and an authentic soul food taste from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 26 in LeBaron Foyer.

The NAACP will host a banquet Friday in the Scheman Building. The event will feature keynote speaker state Rep. Wayne Ford, D-Des Moines, and a pictorial history of people who have played pivotal roles in the history of diversity in Iowa.

Two of the major lectures taking place on campus this month feature prominent authors Ishmael Reed and Elijah Anderson.

Reed has written more than 20 books, including novels, essays, plays and poetry. The title of his presentation is “The Poet as Prophet and Oracle.” The lecture will be held at 8 p.m. Sunday in the Sun Room of the Memorial Union. Reed has taught at such schools as Harvard, Yale and Dartmouth and has been a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.

Elijah Anderson will be featured in a lecture titled “The Social Consequences of Affirmative Action” at 7 p.m. Monday in the Campanile Room of the Memorial Union. Anderson has written such books as “Streetwise: Race, Class” and “Change in an Urban Community and The Code of the Street: Decency, Violence, and the Moral Life of the Inner City.” He is the associate director of the Center for Urban Ethnography at the University of Pennsylvania.

Comedian Mark Reedy, who has performed on both Showtime and HBO, will highlight a program called “Black History Month Comedy Celebration on the 20th” in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union.