‘Tis the Season!

Hey, folks.

I’m writing this blog post on the evening of December 12, less than two weeks before Christmas Day. As someone who loves both Christmas and school, my days lately have honestly been consumed by either thoughts of Christmas or thoughts of my own final projects for the semester (which sometimes meet in the form of me doing my finals while listening to instrumental Christmas music).

So, naturally, when I was figuring out what to write about in the HistoryMakers Digital Archive this week, my thoughts turned to Christmas. I spent a long time combing through the DA to find clips about Christmas that I thought were particularly interesting, and I compiled 19 of them into a playlist that you can find here.

Given the breadth of the careers of interviewees in the Digital Archive—from doctors to actors to genealogists to army officers to dancers to playwrights, etc.—you’d naturally expect it to have an equally wide range of clips related to the season and celebration of Christmas. Combined, I think, they really give a viewer an excellent glimpse into the different experiences African-Americans have in relation to Christmas.

One of my favorite clips that I found was one related to a Christmas tradition in the Bahamas called Junkanoo, shared by businessman Andrew Ingraham.

Another was from Fay Ray, a dancer who had worked with Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, who described spending the holiday one year (probably 2006) in Sweden. This was interesting to hear and pretty funny at the same time.

Another Christmas clip I thought was cute—mostly because it sounded like something straight out of a movie a la A Christmas Story—was shared by comedian George Wallace. Instead of an “official Red Ryder, carbine action, two-hundred shot range model air rifle,” what young George wanted the most in the world was a radio.

You can view all of those clips and more by searching the Digital Archive or checking out the playlist I compiled—which I’m going to link here again, because I know your time is valuable and I don’t want to make you scroll up again. Think of it as my Christmas gift to you, reader.

Well, that’s just about it from me, now. I’m actually not sure if this’ll be my final blog post of the year or not, but either way, I’ll keep in touch! I’m set to have an eventful spring 2022 semester, especially with regard to my work as a Student Brand Ambassador.

So goodbye for now! Peace on Earth, goodwill to mankind, hallelujah, etc., etc.