Black History Month serves as a mirror of the current political climate, so in what ways can we modernize it?
We are in Black History Month in the Britain, and it appears it’s time for a rethink. As time has passed, an event that started out as a festivity and recollection of history, culture and the connections between Black populations worldwide, has taken on a corporate feel, expanding to include events where Black people are paid to speak with white audiences about implicit prejudice and “allyship”. The demonstrations for racial justice in the 2020s generated a rise in the business of demonstrating racial awareness. Yet, that phase is now over. The surge has peaked, producing a diluted aftermath of what raising awareness is for.
The History of Black History Month
Originally observed in the America and its northern neighbor, Black History Month was conceived in 1962 as an observance of African American heritage by African American historian Carter G. Woodson with multiple days of remembrance and recognition in the February's second week. Black History Month developed from this initiative and was formally inaugurated in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the North America in February, but also in October in the United Kingdom, Germany, Ireland and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The period has evolved since that time, placing less emphasis on the accounts of the slave trade across the Atlantic and fights for racial justice, and increasingly on notable African descendants in government, the arts, and social movements, and extensively acknowledging the contribution Black people have made to shape the country. It is in educational institutions where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with lectures and artistic activities. But the manner the month is observed is a indication of the current political situation. How it develops is a instructive case in how assimilation leads to dismantling: the transformation of Black History Month has impeded the purpose of it, which is to confront embedded and established prejudice.
A Troubling Time
Little demonstrates how important it is to rethink Black History Month more than the specific period in which it takes place this year. In the United Kingdom, a reemerging right-wing in the shape of the Reform party is leading the polls. In the summer we witnessed the largest far-right rally in the UK's past. Kemi Badenoch, the Black leader of the Conservative party, is a strong critic of Black Lives Matter, and we are in a place where a elected representative feels emboldened to say that a lack of white people in specific city neighborhoods is a cause for alarm. At the same time, far-right parties are surging in Europe as a complete entity.
In the US, a massive attack against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been carried, frequently with success, to the top legal institutions of the nation. A drive to remove Black history and legacy from the records is under way. One of the former president's early administrative commands aimed at the museum of African American legacy, and the Smithsonian Institution, claiming they of a organized and extensive campaign to rewrite our Nation’s history” by representing the nation “as inherently racist”.
Against this backdrop, the observance illustrates how minimally it can be effective if it is restricted to either dutiful corporate observances, or depoliticized festivities of historical achievements, rather than confronting the situation of the current era. It also reveals how its restricted time span means that it is detached from the wider consistent effort that is required. An academic expert, a educator at a learning establishment, expressed it perfectly when she voiced worries about the temporary “tokenism” of the celebration. “The issue with embracing a superficial method”, she commented, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month turns into a fleeting performance rather than a driver of transformation.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Establishing how to alter, change and broaden actions for racial equality and recognition in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a challenging endeavor. There is a inclination to just eliminate observances such as Black History Month entirely, thinking they are no longer suitable, or are vestiges of an era that has been ineffective.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and heritage of campaigns for equality – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, DEI programs, and certainly, even commercial engagements – form an foundation that a significant effort has been invested in. It is there not just to decay as the politics moves on (and in fact, regresses), but to be a vital organism.
So what would a new dynamic Black History Month appear as? Firstly, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is spread out throughout the annual calendar (as various establishments are already starting to implement), sections of its curriculum (particularly around notable African descendants) included in school curriculums. It would also be a time that does not avoid political issues, and leaves space for people, particularly the younger generation, to express their concerns and stories. What use is mere awareness of the history when it doesn’t reckon with the present reality of extreme conservative demonstrations in the street? Establishments who mark it should not be comforted with the neutral terminology of implicit prejudice and sensitivity to minor insults, but confronted with the threats that impact society if fight against prejudice is not approached earnestly. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made current, critical, and adaptive. It could be that an entire name rebrand is required – Black History is Now Month.
