WINNIPEG -- February is Black History Month and local celebrations have officially started.

A range of activities slated for this year includes concerts, talks and even African cooking classes.

Festivities officially kicked off at City Hall at a lunch with the mayor on Friday.

"Do we as Winnipegger know the scope of that story? If we don’t know, we ought to know," said MayorBrianBowman.

Winnipeg’s Black History Month launched back in 1981, making this year the 39th annual.

'It’s a great time for all Winnipeggers to learn more about who we are as a community, what we’ve achieved by working together," said Bowman.

Originally organized by the local chapter of the National Black Coalition of Canada, it is now run by the Black History Month Committee.

"The only way that we succeed is by educating ourselves and giving knowledge to our community and to our people and remembering our past and making changes for the future," said Nadia Thompson, chair of the Black History Month Committee.

For this year’s celebrations, the committee organized a diverse range of fun events to try and engage a younger audience.

"Reaching out to youth is one of our biggest mandates. We want to make sure that they understand what their past is and history is. In order to do that you have to find a way to connect with them," Thompson said.

The Black History Month Committee also keeps a library of books for recreational reading and research purposes to encourage people to discuss Black history.

"It gets a dialogue started and the schools realize that black history is important," Thompson said. "There is a wide range of cultures out there and in our schools. We want to encourage and let them know they are accepted no matter what their background is."

She said Winnipeg is growing fast and there a lot of immigrants coming to the city, making events like Black History Month even more important.

"When they come here they don’t always fit in or it’s not always easy to assimilate to this new culture so we are also part of the community and make sure they feel welcome," said Thompson.

You can find a full list of events on the Black History Month website.