SAN ANTONIO – Unless you’re traveling, you may not be going by the San Antonio International Airport this month, but it’s good to know that anyone who arrives in the Alamo City immediately sees the recognition for Black History Month with an exhibit on display that celebrates black ranchers in South Texas: “The Story of Us: Wilcox Ranch, 150 years in Jake’s Colony A Freedmen’s Settlement in Guadalupe County.”
“We’re so excited to be here and to celebrate Black History,” CEO of SAAACAM Deborah Omawale Jarmon said.
The exhibit at the airport is located in Terminal A Baggage Claim. It will be up through March 2022. The goal is to educate the public about the Wilcox Ranch.
“What we don’t know a lot of is black ranchers and black landowners. The land ownership of African Americans at the turn of the century was over 15,000,000 acres, currently, that has decreased to 98%,” Omawale Jarmon said. “So, celebrating a story like the Wilcox’s still having their ranch is so exciting.”
This exhibit is one of many ways SAAACAM is partnering with the city of San Antonio to celebrate Black History Month. They also offer Black History River Boat Tours on the San Antonio Riverwalk, book readings, free events that are open to the public, and more.
“Black history (is something) we celebrate it 24/7, 365,” Omawale Jarmon said.
Part of their online presence includes free digital exhibits, such as the history of The Buffalo Soldiers. You can click here to learn more about the Bexar County Buffalo Soldiers Association. The organization also promotes educating the public, all year long.
“We’re just proud to be a part of Black History Month in San Antonio,” Trooper of the Bexar County Buffalo Soldier Association Ezekiel Allen said. “We have presentations throughout the city, from book clubs to corporations and so on and so forth.”
Just last week, The New York Times released an article naming San Antonio, along with four other cities, as the top in the country “going all out” for Black History Month---SAAACAM was recognized for their contributions, including a photo from their Black History River Boat tours on the San Antonio River Walk.
“It allows people to see themselves or see other people that don’t look like them in history and understand that they belong,” Omawale Jarmon said.
For more free events, all year long, from SAAACAM, click here.