Microsoft Celebrates Black History Month with Legacy Project

For Black History Month, Microsoft introduces its The Legacy Project A Celebration of Black Changemakers and Their Contributions to Modern Day American History, an initiative that strives to lead the world in re-envisioning Black History’s narrative to shine a bright light on the outstanding accomplishments that African Americans have made in the past but are continuing to make right now.

The project was created by Shy Averett, the Global Sr. Community Program and Events Manager for Microsoft, who managed to create an exhibit that’s capable of highlighting and virtually transporting 13 of the world’s top Black History Museum exhibits into every student’s home or classroom across North America.

“Black History month is a time for us to emphasize the rich heritage and culture of black people as well as spotlight historical events and figures in the black community, but it doesn’t have to stop there, Averett said. “The goal is to create something that will last forever, showing Black History lives every day.

“We plan on building on it, expanding it, and I’m already talking to a designer about further development, so any student, even if they don’t get to look at it now, if it’s a month from now or even if it’s December, will have this resource.”

This partnership with museums, historical landmarks, cultural centers, athletes, and civic influencers worldwide includes a month-long series of free immersive and interactive experiences for K-12 schools and their communities to celebrate and learn how extensive and rich Black History and culture truly is.

With an interface designed to be user-friendly, Averett’ss vision for the Legacy Project is an educational initiative for all ages, reminding users that Black History shouldn’t just be celebrated in February but all year long.

Between 4,289 classes, schools, and organizations, the project has already amassed almost half a million users that will get to experience the struggle for life & liberty for all at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights while safely at home in front of their devices, as well as reading sessions of inspirational children’s stories about Black History like Hidden Figures and Let the Children March, with books read aloud by some of our favorite NBA & NFL players for K-2nd graders.

Other key activities highlighted within the project experience include:

Walking with MLK virtually & fighting for civil rights in the Selma-to-Montgomery Marches of 1965
Stepping back into the Civil Rights Era to witness the struggle for life & liberty for all at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights
Learning about policies that impacted Black communities & Muhammad Ali‘s fight against systemic racism at the Ali Center’s “Truth Be Told” exhibit
Flying through the eyes of WWII’s Tuskegee Airmen, the first Black military aviators in the US Army Air Corps at the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site
Hitting a home run with Satchel Paige and Jackie Robinson at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
Retracing Slavery from Enslavement to Emancipation – Ft. Monroe, Whitney Plantation, and Milton House – Tour Fort Monroe where the first Africans entered the country, explore the Whitney Plantation & see how Slaves lived & walk through the Milton House’s secret passageways of the Underground Railroad
Exploring the legacy of the African Americans in the US military at the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum
Traveling back in time with a fireside chat with Freedom Rider Hezekiah Watkins to protest social injustice & racial inequality & tour the Freedom Rides Museum
Taking a virtual scavenger hunt through George Washington Carver‘s most noted inventions at the Carver Museum
Celebrating today’s groundbreaking African American changemakers who are leading the world right now at Microsoft’s Current Day Black History Museum
Listening to & learning about the origins of Black Music & Music of the Civil Rights Movement with the GRAMMY Museum & many more.