Black History Month acts as a gauge of the political moment, so in what ways can we modernize it?
We are in Black History Month in the UK, and it appears it’s time for a rethink. Throughout its history, an observance that was initiated as a festivity and recollection of history, culture and the connections between international African diaspora communities, has developed a corporate feel, expanding to include events where Black people are remunerated to speak with white audiences about hidden biases and “allyship”. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests sparked an increase in the industry of showcasing anti-racist commitment. Yet, that phase is now over. The surge has reached its height, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what raising awareness is for.
The History of Black History Celebration
Initially celebrated in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was conceived in 1962 as a week dedicated to Negro history by African American historian Carter G. Woodson with a week of remembrance and recognition in the middle of February. Black History Month evolved from this movement and was officially launched in 1970. Today it is observed not only in the US and Canada in winter, but also in October in the UK, the Federal Republic of Germany, the Republic of Ireland and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The month has developed since that time, focusing less on the narratives of transatlantic enslavement and fights for racial justice, and more on prominent Black figures in politics, culture, and activism, and broadly celebrating the impact Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in educational institutions where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the way the month is commemorated is a indication of the current political situation. How it develops is a good lesson in how assimilation leads to dismantling: the restructuring of Black History Month has hindered the point of it, which is to confront systemic and institutional racism.
A Jarring Moment
Little demonstrates how important it is to rethink Black History Month better than the current time in which it occurs this year. In the Britain, a resurgent right in the form of the Reform party is leading the polls. In the summer we witnessed the most significant ultra-conservative gathering in the UK's past. the Conservative leader, the person of color at the helm of the right-wing political group, is a staunch adversary of Black Lives Matter, and we are in a place where a elected representative feels empowered to state that the absence of Caucasian individuals in certain urban areas is a reason for concern. Simultaneously, far-right parties are expanding in the EU as a whole.
In the US, a massive attack against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been carried, often successfully, to the supreme judicial bodies of the country. A campaign to scrub African American heritage and experience from the records is in progress. One of Donald Trump's early administrative commands targeted the museum of African American legacy, and the prestigious establishment, accusing them of a coordinated and broad attempt to rewrite our Nation’s history” by representing the nation “as inherently racist”.
Given these circumstances, the celebration symbolises how little it can be impactful if it is restricted to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or depoliticized commemorations of historical achievements, rather than challenging the conditions of the current era. It also reveals how its limited duration means that it is detached from the more extensive continuous action that is necessary. A university professor, a professor at an educational institution, articulated it most accurately when she voiced worries about the short-term symbolic gestures of the month. “The issue with adopting a symbolic stance”, she wrote, “is that it often means that Black History Month turns into a fleeting performance rather than a agent of progress.”
Reconsidering, Not Discarding
Determining how to adjust, modify and expand actions for fair treatment and appreciation in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a difficult task. There is a inclination to just discontinue events including Black History Month entirely, believing they are inadequate for current needs, or are vestiges of an era that has not worked.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and legacy of racial movements – community-based BLM initiatives, inclusion and equity efforts, and indeed, including corporate presentations – represent an framework that a lot of work has gone into. It is there not just to decay as the political landscape shifts (and in fact, deteriorates), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a fresh vibrant Black History Month seem? To begin with, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is distributed through the year (as some institutions are already starting to implement), sections of its curriculum (particularly around prominent figures of color) included in school curriculums. It would also be a era that does not avoid politics, and leaves space for citizens, particularly young people, to express their concerns and stories. What value has simple recognition of the bygone era when it ignores the present reality of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the street? Institutions who mark it should not be comforted with the neutral terminology of hidden discrimination and sensitivity to subtle slights, but confronted with the risks that impact society if anti-racism is not taken seriously. In short, Black History Month should be made current, critical, and adaptive. Maybe an entire name rebrand is required – Present-Day African Heritage Celebration.
