2 educators are attempting a 30-hour Black history lesson in Philadelphia to break a Guinness World Record

History may soon be made in Philadelphia — but if not, it will at least be told for hours and hours.

This Black History Month, two educators are teaching a marathon 30-plus-hour Black history lesson in an attempt to break a Guinness World Record.

Around 8 a.m. Friday, Dr. Anita Lewis and Gwen Ebron started teaching the lesson at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church in East Mount Airy. 

The lesson, which Lewis said covers "the history, the brilliance of Africans and African Americans," spans 5,000 years of history, beginning in ancient Africa, moving through slavery, Reconstruction and the Civil Rights Era, even looking ahead to the future, including artificial intelligence.

They won't be wrapped up until Saturday afternoon, with the goal of breaking the current 26-hour record. That record was set in 2018 in Denton, Texas, covering the state's history "from its earliest settlements through to the twenty-first century," according to Guinness World Records.

To qualify for the record, Ebron and Lewis must teach nonstop, so the marathon has strict guidelines, with the instructors allowed only one five-minute break each hour.

They plan to use storytelling, primary source documents and visual timelines to keep the audience engaged.

Ebron is the African American History teacher for Enon's African Heritage Ministry, which is hosting the event. This is also a celebration of the church's 150th anniversary.

"We have to make sure that we tell our history, even if others don't tell it," Rev. Dr. Alyn Waller, the church's pastor, told CBS News Philadelphia.

Around 12 p.m. Friday, Lewis and Ebron were going strong as a crowd gathered, with some coming and going, and others staying for hours. The audience was there not just to support the record attempt, but to be reminded.

"It is important for us to know our history, it's important for us to learn the lessons that we need to learn, and to never forget," one audience member said.

The lesson is open to the public and is being livestreamed on the Urban Intellectuals YouTube channel here.