Black History Month is a reflection of the current political climate, so how do we revamp it?
It's Black History Month in the UK, and it feels like it’s time for a re-evaluation. Throughout its history, an event that began as a celebration and reminder of heritage, traditions and links between global Black communities, has adopted a corporate feel, growing to encompass events where African descendants are compensated to talk to Caucasian groups about hidden biases and active solidarity. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade created a surge in the enterprise of displaying cultural sensitivity. However, that period has concluded. The tide has peaked, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what increasing understanding is for.
The History of Black History Celebration
Initially celebrated in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was created in 1962 as an observance of African American heritage by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with seven days of remembrance and recognition in the middle of February. Black History Month grew out of this campaign and was formally inaugurated in 1970. Now it is celebrated not only in the US and Canada in the second month, but also in October in the United Kingdom, Germany, Ireland and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The observance has transformed since those days, focusing less on the histories of transatlantic enslavement and civil rights battles, and greater focus on notable African descendants in public life, creative fields, and advocacy, and widely honoring the impact Black people have made to shape the country. It is in educational institutions where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the manner the celebration is commemorated is a manifestation of the political moment. How it progresses is a instructive case in how assimilation leads to erosion: the transformation of Black History Month has impeded the purpose of it, which is to tackle systemic and institutional racism.
A Disconcerting Period
Few things illustrate how important it is to rethink Black History Month more than the particular moment in which it falls this year. In the United Kingdom, a resurgent right in the guise of the Reform organization is top in opinion ratings. In the summer we witnessed the largest far-right rally in the history of Britain. a prominent political figure, the Black leader of the Tory party, is a firm opponent of anti-racism activism, and we are in a place where a member of parliament gains confidence to say that “not seeing any white faces” in specific city neighborhoods is a reason for concern. Meanwhile, extreme conservative groups are surging in Europe as a complete entity.
In the United States, a massive attack against inclusion programs and preferential policies has been carried, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the highest courts of the nation. A drive to remove African American heritage and experience from the records is in progress. One of the political figure's first executive orders aimed at the institution dedicated to Black heritage, and the renowned cultural organization, alleging that they of a “concerted and widespread effort to alter the country's historical narrative” by representing the nation “as inherently racist”.
In this context, the observance represents how little it can be influential if it is restricted to either obligatory business commemorations, or depoliticized festivities of contributions in the past, rather than challenging the conditions of the contemporary world. It also reveals how its restricted time span means that it is separated from the wider consistent effort that is necessary. Denise Miller, a educator at a learning establishment, articulated it most accurately when she voiced worries about the temporary “tokenism” of the month. “The problem with adopting a symbolic stance”, she stated, “is that it often means that Black History Month turns into a transient display rather than a driver of transformation.”
Rethinking, But Not Jettisoning
Figuring out how to alter, change and broaden actions for fair treatment and appreciation in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a challenging endeavor. There is a urge to just discontinue observances such as Black History Month entirely, thinking they are inadequate for current needs, or are remnants of an era that has been ineffective.
However, regardless of the situation, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and legacy of activism for racial justice – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, inclusion and equity efforts, and certainly, even commercial engagements – form an framework that a significant effort has been dedicated to. It is there not merely to decline as the situation evolves (and in fact, regresses), but to be a vital organism.
So what would a fresh vibrant Black History Month appear as? Well, first, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is distributed throughout the annual calendar (as certain organizations are already beginning to do), elements of its material (particularly around prominent figures of color) integrated into school curriculums. It would also be a time that does not evade governmental matters, and allows opportunity for people, particularly young people, to share their anxieties and narratives. What value has simple recognition of the past when it fails to address the current situation of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the urban areas? Organizations who observe it should not be reassured with the passive language of “unconscious bias” and sensitivity to “microaggressions”, but challenged by the threats that face all if fight against prejudice is not treated with importance. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made current, pressing, and responsive. It could be that an complete renaming is in order – Contemporary Black History Month.
