Embassy News

U.S. Embassy Celebrates Black History Month

February 11, 2009

US Embassy Cultural Attaché Peter Galus talking about civil rights movement to high school students at the Ashgabat secondary school #27

Every February, the United States celebrates Black History Month -an event significant not only to people in the USA, but also to citizens of other countries, for its cultural and historical value. In the past, the U.S. Embassy in Turkmenistan in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Culture and TV/Radio Broadcasting organized programs by American speakers on African-American history, literature, culture, and related topics, including film festivals at the National Library of Turkmenistan and the Turkmen State Magtymguly Music and Drama Theater during the months of February-March.

This month, the program started off with a presentation by Peter Paul Galus, the Cultural Attache of the US Embassy, at Secondary School #27, specializing in English language.

Mr. Galus gave an hour-long PowerPoint presentation to 30 high school students and several teachers about the history of black people in America – their difficult past, history of civil rights movement in the USA, and their achievements over the years. The presentation started off with a brief history of slavery, and progressed to the latest achievement of the United States and its people: the first African-American president, President Barack Obama.

The students were very interested to hear some things they may have already known, like the fact that slavery has existed for a long time, and was fought against by many people, and some things new to them, like a little personal history of Barack Obama and how he got to where he is now.

Presentation about African-American History in the USA and Barak Obama as the first African-American President of the USA

After the presentation, Mr. Galus answered some questions from students, and handed out some informational pamphlets.

These presentations will continue throughout the month of February and will be conducted at various higher educational institutions in Ashgabat, as well as the Turkmenistan Red Crescent Society and the National Library of Turkmenistan.  The U.S. Embassy’s Public Affairs Section Information Resource Center will also host a series of movie showings and presentations devoted to Black History Month throughout the month of February.