Monday was Martin King Jr. Day in the United States, marking the birth of the civil rights leader and honoring his efforts to end desegregation in the nation. And coming up in a few weeks is the start of Black History Month, observed in February.

In Lawrence County, we have a number of events tied to this. Ohio University Southern will host its annual celebration of the life of King at the end of the month on Jan. 30, while schools will host special events and speakers on the topic. 

At Burlington Elementary School, librarian Harriet Ramsey will, as she does each year, host a special exhibit on Black history, filling the display cases at the entrance of the building, containing items related to the lives of inspirational Black figures from U.S. and world history.

This year, there will be a special event coming up on Ohio University Southern’s campus.

Prince Hall 42 Masonic Lodge will host a performance of the play “Heritage,” comprised of a series of monologues on the lives of Black figures from history, ranging from Medgar Evars to Ruby Bridges to Mahalia Jackson.

This will take place on Feb 17 at 3 p.m.

This will be a repeat of the production, which premiered at OUS for their Juneteenth celebration last year and has been performed throughout the Tri-State.

We will have more on that event in The Tribune as it gets closer, but we wanted to put the date out there for those who might be interested.

These stories are American stories and contribute to the fabric and history of our country and we encourage all to check out the show.