African American Programs at the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities will present the second of two inaugural 2014 Griot Apprenticeship presentations this Saturday. “For the Common Good: African American Land Displacement in Fairfax County,” a free public program, will be held on Saturday, Feb. 15, from 2 – 3:30 p.m. at the James Lee Community Center Auditorium, 2855 Annandale Road, Falls Church. 

The Falls Church Griot Team, including Edwin B. Henderson II (Griot), Alyssa Walker (apprentice), Dr. Spencer Crew (scholar), and Marion Dobbins (student), will discuss African American land displacement and the preservation of the African American history of Falls Church.

In January 2013, the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities launched the Griot Apprenticeship, a community history preservation program that unites a community historian with an apprentice, scholar, and student for a 12-month partnership. Its primary objectives were to identify and support the growth of a new generation of tradition bearers, strengthen community and academic collaborations, and encourage local or regional research programs and projects.