LEWISBURG, Pa. — The theme of Black History Month 2024 is African Americans and the Arts. An alumnus from Bucknell University is leaving his mark on Hollywood and students in central Pennsylvania.
As an actor, Gbenga Akinnagbe usually spends his time on movie or television sets. But on a recent trip to his alma mater, Bucknell University, he enjoyed talking and sparring with the wrestling team.
Gbenga grew up outside of Washington, DC. His family is from Nigeria, and he is the first of his family to be born in the U.S. He graduated from Bucknell University in 2000. He was here on a wrestling scholarship and says the transition from Washington to Lewisburg was an adjustment.
"It definitely forged me into the next me, the next person I needed to be. It was tough initially just because there isn't much diversity here."
He was not involved in Bucknell's theater department as a student and majored in political science and English. After graduation, he started working for the federal government as a legislative assistant and was encouraged to audition for a play.
Soon after, he went to see plays regularly and got a headshot. Gbenga was bitten by the acting bug.
"It became like a drug, just finding out as much as I could and seeing people perform and create in front of me. I don't know how anyone could not be inspired by that."
He says one obstacle he faced had to do with his race. Many of the roles he came across were for characters experiencing poverty and pain.
"I had to make a decision if that's something I wanted to do consistently in order to work, and it wasn't. It wasn't actually even a decision. And I've been very fortunate to be able to play a number of different types of roles."
He is perhaps best known for his role as Chris Partlow in HBO's "The Wire," which he calls an amazing experience. "The Wire" follows the narcotics scene in Baltimore through both law enforcement and drug dealers.
"What's great about that show is it teaches people empathy in ways they don't see coming, which is actually a difficult thing to do, which is why I think it's had the staying power it has had."
Recently, Gbenga was invited back to Bucknell University as the keynote speaker for the university's Martin Luther King Jr. Week. He spoke about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict and King's legacy.
"I take strength in his words and courage from his actions. He repeatedly chose the most challenging path when he could have stayed safe and quiet."
The theme of this year's Black History Month is African Americans and the Arts. Gbenga says what's been exciting for him is seeing more and more people of color taking control of how their stories are being told.
"There's more faces behind the camera, more faces in the writing room, more faces in front of the camera, and that's where we need to go. I would say that continuing to build our own machines and not depend on Hollywood and some of these other preexisting models to tell our stories is the way forward."
Gbenga Akinnagbe has no plans to stop acting. He is currently on a show called "The Old Man," which is filming season two.