Zelos Marchandt

Zelos Marchandt is a multimedia creative living in Portland. Read More

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Cascade Festival of African Films is the nation’s longest-running nonprofit African film festival.

Credit: Cascade Festival of African Films

Black History Month in Portland

Celebrate African American excellence with music, art, festivals and more.

Updated July 28, 2021 1 min read

Zelos Marchandt

Zelos Marchandt is a multimedia creative living in Portland. Read More

Every February, Americans of all races and backgrounds celebrate Black History Month by commemorating iconic civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr., Harriet Tubman, and Black History Month’s founder, Carter G. Woodson. A citywide celebration includes the annual Black History Festival NW, which hosts events all month long (check their website to learn more about their programming). Join in celebrating, honoring and acknowledging Black history in Portland and beyond at these local events.

PDX Jazz Festival

Jumptown, Portland’s raucous jazz scene of the 1940s, is sadly lost, but every year around February (coinciding with Black History Month), visitors can dive into today’s sea of jazz greats at the PDX Jazz Festival. The festival honors special jazz anniversaries and legends, along with feature performances by legendary artists. Previous performers have included the likes of Grammy award-winning bass extraordinaire Stanley Clarke. PDX Jazz Festival performances — including many free shows — are held at multiple venues across the city every year.

Cascade Festival of African Films

Billed as the longest-running nonprofit African film festival in America, Portland’s free Cascade Festival of African Films has celebrated African achievements and hopes for the future since 1991. Through its roster of films, the month-long festival aims to share stories of Africa as told by actual Africans, rather than the Western-made narratives that Americans typically see. Hosted by the Hollywood Theatre and Portland Community College’s Cascade Campus, the festival also includes staged theatrical readings, talk-backs with the films’ creators, an African marketplace and a social hour with food and live music every Saturday.

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Full Calendar

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