This commemorative 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 seems it’s time for a re-evaluation. Throughout its history, an event that started out as a festivity and recollection of history, culture and the connections between Black populations worldwide, has developed a business-like atmosphere, expanding to include gatherings where Black people are paid to address Caucasian groups about implicit prejudice and active solidarity. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests generated a rise in the enterprise of demonstrating racial awareness. Yet, that phase is now over. The surge has reached its height, producing a diluted aftermath of what promoting consciousness is for.
The History of Black History Month
Originally observed in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was conceived in 1962 as an observance of African American heritage by historian of African descent Carter G. Woodson with a week of commemoration and observance in the second week of February. Black History Month evolved from this campaign and was publicly established in 1970. Today it is observed not only in the US and Canada in February, but also in autumn in the Britain, Germany, Éire and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The period has transformed since its inception, placing less emphasis on the histories of the slave trade across the Atlantic and struggles for equality, and increasingly on notable African descendants in politics, culture, and activism, and extensively acknowledging the contribution Black people have made to shape the country. It is in learning environments where Black History Month is most commonly celebrated, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the way the celebration is commemorated is a reflection of the contemporary political context. How it progresses is a valuable example in how appropriation leads to weakening: the restructuring of Black History Month has impeded the purpose of it, which is to address embedded and established prejudice.
A Troubling Time
Few things illustrate how crucial it is to rethink Black History Month as much as the specific period in which it occurs this year. In the UK, a reemerging right-wing in the shape of the Reform party is leading the polls. In the warmer months we observed the biggest extreme right demonstration in the history of Britain. the Conservative leader, the Black leader of the Tory party, is a strong critic of the racial justice movement, and we are in a place where a elected representative gains confidence to state that “not seeing any white faces” in certain urban areas is a source of worry. Meanwhile, ultra-nationalist movements are growing in the European continent as a whole.
In the United States, a significant offensive against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been carried, frequently with success, to the top legal institutions of the country. A effort to scrub African American heritage and legacy from the historical documents is under way. One of Donald Trump's initial presidential directives targeted the museum of African American legacy, and the Smithsonian Institution, alleging that they of a coordinated and broad attempt to rewrite our Nation’s history” by portraying America “as fundamentally prejudiced”.
Against this backdrop, the observance illustrates how insufficiently it can be influential if it is limited to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or depoliticized celebrations of former accomplishments, rather than addressing the realities of the contemporary world. It also reveals how its short period means that it is detached from the more extensive continuous action that is necessary. An academic expert, a prof at an educational institution, articulated it most accurately when she voiced worries about the fleeting superficial actions of the celebration. “The issue with adopting a symbolic stance”, she commented, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month becomes a transient display rather than a catalyst for change.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Figuring out how to adapt, revise and extend initiatives for racial equality and recognition in such moments of dejection and worry is a treacherous thing. There is a temptation to just eliminate events including Black History Month altogether, thinking they are no longer suitable, or are relics of an era that has been ineffective.
However, regardless of the situation, Black History Month, and in fact the entire extended network and heritage of racial movements – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, DEI programs, and yes, even those talks to businesses – constitute an framework that a considerable labor has been dedicated to. It is there not just to decay as the situation evolves (and in fact, regresses), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a new dynamic Black History Month appear as? Firstly, it would be not just one concentrated month: something that is spread out throughout the annual calendar (as various establishments are already starting to implement), sections of its curriculum (particularly around historic Black characters) integrated into academic syllabi. It would also be a era that does not shy away from politics, and leaves space for people, particularly young people, to air their fears and experiences. What value has mere awareness of the past when it doesn’t reckon with the present reality of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the public spaces? Organizations who mark it should not be reassured with the neutral terminology of “unconscious bias” and sensitivity to minor insults, but faced with the risks that face all if fight against prejudice is not taken seriously. In short, Black History Month should be made contemporary, critical, and adaptive. Maybe an total re-identification is necessary – Contemporary Black History Month.