Idaho Bulletin 230-6-1

February 1, 2006

SUBJECT:  EOP - National Black History Month

TO:  All Employees, NRCS, Idaho

Purpose.  To provide information on National Black History Month

Expiration Date.  September 30, 2006

February is Black History Month.  The annual celebration is sponsored by the Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History (ASALH) in Washington, DC, which was founded in 1915. Each year, the ASALH designates the official theme for the month. ASALH has chosen to devote this year’s theme to exploring the impact that Black fraternal, social, and civic organizations have had on the evolution of African American life and history.  Most Americans recognize the centrality of African American religious institutions in the formation of community.  In contrast, too little attention has been paid to the full spectrum of black organizations. The theme for 2006 is: Celebrating Community: A Tribute to Black Fraternal, Social and Civic Institutions.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the first continuous, collegiate black Greek letter fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha.  Established in an age when racial segregation and disenfranchisement plagued African Americans, the rise of black fraternities and sororities bore witness to the fact that despite hardships, African Americans refused to assent to a status of inferiority.  Serving more than just their immediate members, the fraternities and sororities joined with the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs, the Prince Hall Masons, and Eastern Stars, the Urban League, and other civic organizations to provide service to the entire black community.

In Idaho, Blacks began to form fraternal orders of their own in the early 1900’s out of necessity; they did not have access to existing groups.  Some notable Black institutions and the year they were established in Idaho’s early history include:

• African-American League, 1903 (later known as the Colored Men’s Progressive Society)
• The Women’s Athenian Club, 1904
• Optimist Club, 1907
• Colored Baptist Church & Methodist African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME), 1908, Pocatello
• E.F. Hawkins Masonic Lodge No. 92, 1914
• Boise Chapter of the NAACP, 1919 *
• First Black Scout troupe, 1924, Pocatello
• The Negro Women’s National League, 1924
• The Women’s Republican Club, 1924
• Men’s Civic Club, 1932 (forerunner of NAACP chapters in Pocatello).

* The first person to let Kim Golden know the name of the current Idaho chapter of NAACP, the Chapter President’s name and when they meet will be awarded a non-monetary prize. (Contest ends on February 28, 2006)

/s/                                            /s/
RICHARD SIMS                         KIM GOLDEN                        
State Conservationist                Black Emphasis Program Manager 

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