Urban historian and TikTok sensation Shermann “Dilla” Thomas will give a talk titled “Everything Dope about America Comes from Chicago” in honor of Black History/Heritage Month. The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place in person at 6 p.m. Feb. 22 in Donn F. Bailey Legacy Hall at the Jacob H. Carruthers Center for Inner City Studies (CCICS), 700 E. Oakwood Blvd. in Chicago. It will also be live streamed on the Chicago Mahogany Tours Facebook page.
To attend the in-person event, an RSVP is required via email to CCICS Office Administrator Alex Gonzalez at a-gonzalez55@neiu.edu. All audience members must provide an ID, proof of full COVID-19 vaccination for contact tracing, must wear a face mask (preferably a high quality mask, such as an N95, KN95 or three-layer surgical mask) and be socially distanced while seated.
Thomas has been actively preserving and disseminating the rich history and culture of the city of Chicago, highlighting its people, architecture and impact on the world. He has been featured on the front page of the Chicago Tribune and has also been covered by the Chicago Sun-Times and Block Club Chicago. Thomas has appeared on local Chicago news outlets, including NBC 5, ABC 7, WGN, Fox 32 and WCIU 26. He is also a contributor to Chicago's National Public Radio station, WBEZ, as well as a freelancer writer and content creator for the historic Chicago Defender and the award-winning not-for-profit news source Block Club Chicago. Thomas’s clever history lessons have also caught national attention, with appearances on “NBC's First Look”, the “Today” show, and “The Kelly Clarkson Show.” Through history and storytelling, Thomas is hoping to change the narrative about Chicago.
The presentation will be followed by a question and answer session.
Top photo: Shermann “Dilla” Thomas, photo by Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago
