Black History Month is a reflection of the prevailing political atmosphere, so in what ways can we modernize it?
It's Black History Month in the Britain, and it appears it’s time for a rethink. Throughout its history, an celebration that began as a celebration and reminder of history, culture and the connections between Black populations worldwide, has developed a commercial tone, expanding to include functions where Black people are compensated to talk to white audiences about hidden biases and “allyship”. The demonstrations for racial justice in the 2020s created a surge in the enterprise of displaying cultural sensitivity. But even that moment has passed. The wave has crested, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what raising awareness is for.
The History 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 remembrance and recognition in the middle of February. Black History Month developed from this campaign and was officially launched in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the US and Canada in winter, but also in October in the Britain, Germany, Ireland and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The month has developed since its inception, placing less emphasis on the histories of transatlantic enslavement and civil rights battles, and greater focus on notable African descendants in politics, culture, and activism, and broadly celebrating the contribution Black people have made to shape the country. It is in learning environments where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with talks and cultural events. But the manner the month is celebrated is a indication of the current political situation. How it evolves is a instructive case in how assimilation leads to erosion: the reshaping of Black History Month has impeded the point of it, which is to tackle embedded and established prejudice.
A Jarring Moment
Few things illustrate how important it is to reevaluate Black History Month as much as the current time in which it takes place this year. In the United Kingdom, a resurgent right in the form of the Reform political group is top in opinion ratings. In the warmer months we observed the most significant ultra-conservative gathering in the history of Britain. Kemi Badenoch, the Black leader of the right-wing political group, is a firm opponent of the racial justice movement, and we are in a place where a legislator feels emboldened to declare that the absence of Caucasian individuals in certain urban areas is a cause for alarm. Meanwhile, extreme conservative groups are surging in the European continent as a entirety.
In the America, a significant offensive against inclusion programs and preferential policies has been taken, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the supreme judicial bodies of the country. A campaign to scrub the history of people of color and experience from the records is under way. One of the former president's first executive orders aimed at the museum of African American legacy, and the renowned cultural organization, claiming they of a “concerted and widespread effort to change the national past” by depicting the United States “as inherently racist”.
Against this backdrop, the month illustrates how little it can be effective if it is limited to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or politically neutered commemorations of historical achievements, rather than challenging 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. A university professor, a professor at University of Greenwich, put it best when she raised concerns about the temporary “tokenism” of the month. “The difficulty with adopting a symbolic stance”, she wrote, “is that it often means that Black History Month evolves into a fleeting performance rather than a driver of transformation.”
Rethinking, But Not Jettisoning
Establishing how to adjust, modify and expand actions for equal rights and acknowledgment in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a difficult task. There is a inclination to just eliminate observances such as Black History Month entirely, assuming they are no longer suitable, or are remnants of an time that has been ineffective.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the entire extended network and heritage of activism for racial justice – community-based BLM initiatives, inclusion and equity efforts, and certainly, even commercial engagements – form an infrastructure that a significant effort has been invested in. It is there not just to decay as the situation evolves (and in fact, deteriorates), but to be a living breathing thing.
So what would a contemporary active Black History Month seem? Firstly, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is spread out across all seasons (as various establishments are already starting to implement), parts of its content (particularly around historic Black characters) incorporated into school curriculums. It would also be a time that does not shy away from governmental matters, and provides room for citizens, particularly young people, to share their anxieties and narratives. What purpose serves basic knowledge of the history when it ignores the contemporary truth of extreme conservative demonstrations in the street? Organizations who celebrate it should not be pacified with the non-confrontational words of “unconscious bias” and awareness of minor insults, but confronted with the risks that affect everyone if opposition to discrimination is not taken seriously. In short, Black History Month should be made contemporary, critical, and responsive. Maybe an complete renaming is required – Present-Day African Heritage Celebration.
