This commemorative month is a reflection of the prevailing political atmosphere, so in what ways can we modernize it?
We are in Black History Month in the United Kingdom, and it feels like it’s time for a rethink. Throughout its history, an celebration that started out as a festivity and recollection of heritage, traditions and links between international African diaspora communities, has developed a business-like atmosphere, expanding to include events where Black people are compensated to talk to Caucasian groups about hidden biases and “allyship”. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade created a surge in the enterprise of displaying cultural sensitivity. But even that moment has passed. The wave has reached its height, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what increasing understanding is for.
The History of Black History Month
First commemorated in the US and Canada, Black History Month was created in 1962 as “Negro History Week” by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with multiple days of celebration and reflection in the February's second week. Black History Month developed from this movement and was formally inaugurated in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the United States and Canada in the second month, but also in autumn in the Britain, Germany, Éire and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The period has evolved since those days, giving reduced attention to the histories of colonial slavery and civil rights battles, and greater focus on influential individuals of color in politics, culture, and activism, and extensively acknowledging the impact Black people have made to mold society. It is in learning environments where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with lectures and artistic activities. But the method the observance is celebrated is a indication of the political moment. How it evolves is a good lesson in how appropriation leads to weakening: the transformation of Black History Month has stymied the point of it, which is to confront embedded and established prejudice.
A Jarring Moment
Hardly anything shows how crucial it is to reconsider Black History Month better than the particular moment in which it falls this year. In the Britain, a revitalized conservative movement in the form of the Reform political group is ahead in surveys. In the recent season we observed the largest far-right rally in the history of Britain. Kemi Badenoch, the African descendant in charge of the Conservative party, is a staunch adversary of the racial justice movement, and we are in a position where a elected representative feels emboldened to say that the absence of Caucasian individuals in specific city neighborhoods is a source of worry. Simultaneously, far-right parties are growing in Europe as a entirety.
In the United States, a massive attack against DEI and affirmative action has been taken, frequently with success, to the supreme judicial bodies of the nation. A effort to scrub Black history and legacy from the archives is in progress. One of Donald Trump's early administrative commands focused on the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the Smithsonian Institution, claiming they of a coordinated and broad attempt to change the national past” by representing the nation “as naturally discriminatory”.
In this context, the celebration symbolises how minimally it can be effective if it is confined to either obligatory business commemorations, or depoliticized festivities of contributions in the past, rather than challenging the conditions of the contemporary world. It also shows how its short period means that it is disconnected from the broader ongoing work that is required. A university professor, a professor at an educational institution, put it best when she voiced worries about the temporary “tokenism” of the observance. “The issue with embracing a superficial method”, she wrote, “is that it often means that Black History Month becomes a transient display rather than a driver of transformation.”
Rethinking, But Not Jettisoning
Determining how to adjust, modify and expand actions for fair treatment and appreciation in such times of discouragement and concern is a difficult task. There is a temptation to just do away with events including Black History Month entirely, thinking they are simply not fit for purpose, or are remnants of an era that has been ineffective.
Yet, in spite of all this, Black History Month, and in fact the complete comprehensive structure and legacy of campaigns for equality – community-based BLM initiatives, DEI programs, and indeed, including corporate presentations – form an infrastructure that a significant effort has gone into. It is there not merely to decline as the politics moves on (and in fact, regresses), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a new dynamic Black History Month appear as? To begin with, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is spread out across all seasons (as some institutions are already starting to implement), sections of its curriculum (particularly around historic Black characters) included in academic syllabi. It would also be a period that does not avoid politics, and allows opportunity for people, particularly youth, to air their fears and experiences. What purpose serves mere awareness of the history when it doesn’t reckon with the present reality of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the street? Establishments who celebrate it should not be comforted with the neutral terminology of hidden discrimination and sensitivity to “microaggressions”, but confronted with the dangers that impact society if opposition to discrimination is not approached earnestly. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, pressing, and adaptive. Perhaps an entire name rebrand is necessary – Contemporary Black History Month.
