Black History Month acts as a gauge of the prevailing political atmosphere, so what steps can we take to refresh it?
We are in Black History Month in the Britain, and it feels like it’s time for a reassessment. As time has passed, an observance that started out as a celebration and reminder of the past, cultural identity and bonds between international African diaspora communities, has adopted a corporate feel, growing to encompass gatherings where African descendants are paid to talk to Caucasian groups about implicit prejudice and “allyship”. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade generated a rise in the industry of showcasing anti-racist commitment. However, that period has concluded. The surge has reached its height, producing a diluted aftermath of what increasing understanding is for.
The Origins of Black History Observance
First commemorated in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was created in 1962 as a week dedicated to Negro history by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with seven days of celebration and reflection in the middle of February. Black History Month developed from this movement and was publicly established in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the United States and Canada in winter, but also in the tenth month in the United Kingdom, Deutschland, Éire and the Holland.
The month has evolved since those days, focusing less on the narratives of the slave trade across the Atlantic and fights for racial justice, and more on influential individuals of color in politics, culture, and activism, and widely honoring the contribution Black people have made to shape the country. It is in schools where Black History Month is most commonly celebrated, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the method the observance is commemorated is a manifestation of the political moment. How it develops is a valuable example in how assimilation leads to erosion: the reshaping of Black History Month has stymied the objective of it, which is to tackle systemic and institutional racism.
A Troubling Time
Little demonstrates how important it is to rethink Black History Month better than the particular moment in which it occurs this year. In the UK, a resurgent right in the guise of the Reform organization is top in opinion ratings. In the warmer months we saw the biggest extreme right demonstration in British history. a prominent political figure, the African descendant in charge of the right-wing political group, is a firm opponent of the racial justice movement, and we are in a position where a member of parliament feels empowered to state that a lack of white people in certain urban areas is a source of worry. Meanwhile, ultra-nationalist movements are surging in the EU as a entirety.
In the US, a massive attack against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been taken, often successfully, to the highest courts of the nation. A effort to erase the history of people of color and experience from the historical documents is ongoing. One of the political figure's early administrative commands aimed at the museum of African American legacy, and the prestigious establishment, alleging that they of a coordinated and broad attempt to rewrite our Nation’s history” by portraying America “as naturally discriminatory”.
In this context, the celebration symbolises how minimally it can be impactful if it is confined to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or stripped of political content commemorations of historical achievements, rather than confronting the conditions of the contemporary world. It also demonstrates how its limited duration means that it is disconnected from the broader ongoing work that is required. Denise Miller, a professor at University of Greenwich, articulated it most accurately when she voiced worries about the fleeting superficial actions of the observance. “The difficulty with adopting a symbolic stance”, she commented, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month evolves into a fleeting performance rather than a driver of transformation.”
Reconsidering, Not Discarding
Figuring out how to alter, change and broaden actions for equal rights and acknowledgment in such moments of dejection and worry is a treacherous thing. There is a temptation to just eliminate events including Black History Month entirely, assuming they are no longer suitable, or are vestiges of an period that has not worked.
Yet, in spite of all this, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and legacy of campaigns for equality – community-based BLM initiatives, DEI programs, and yes, even those talks to businesses – represent an infrastructure that a significant effort has been invested in. It is there not merely to decline as the political landscape shifts (and in fact, declines), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a fresh vibrant Black History Month look like? Firstly, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is spread out across all seasons (as certain organizations are already beginning to do), sections of its curriculum (particularly around historic Black characters) included in school curriculums. It would also be a period that does not avoid political issues, and leaves space for citizens, particularly the younger generation, to express their concerns and stories. What value has basic knowledge of the past when it doesn’t reckon with the contemporary truth of far-right rallies in the urban areas? Institutions who observe it should not be comforted with the passive language of hidden discrimination and alertness to “microaggressions”, but challenged by the risks that impact society if fight against prejudice is not taken seriously. In short, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, urgent, and adaptive. Maybe an total re-identification is in order – Contemporary Black History Month.
