Black History Month is a reflection of the current political climate, 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 re-evaluation. Throughout its history, an event that was initiated as a celebration and reminder of heritage, traditions and links between global Black communities, has adopted a business-like atmosphere, growing to encompass events where individuals of African heritage are paid to talk to predominantly white listeners about “unconscious bias” and supportive partnership. The demonstrations for racial justice in the 2020s sparked an increase in the business of demonstrating racial awareness. Yet, that phase is now over. The tide has reached its height, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what increasing understanding is for.
The Background of Black History Celebration
First commemorated in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was established in 1962 as “Negro History Week” by African American historian Carter G. Woodson with a week of remembrance and recognition in the second week of February. Black History Month developed from this initiative and was formally inaugurated in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the United States and Canada in February, but also in October in the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, Éire and the Netherlands.
The month has developed since its inception, giving reduced attention to the accounts of transatlantic enslavement and fights for racial justice, and greater focus on prominent Black figures in government, the arts, and social movements, and broadly celebrating the contribution Black people have made to shape the country. It is in schools where Black History Month is most regularly observed, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the method the month is celebrated is a manifestation of the political moment. How it evolves is a good lesson in how appropriation leads to dismantling: the transformation of Black History Month has stymied the purpose of it, which is to confront embedded and established prejudice.
A Troubling Time
Little demonstrates how crucial it is to reconsider Black History Month better than the particular moment in which it occurs this year. In the Britain, a resurgent right in the shape of the Reform organization is leading the polls. In the summer we saw the most significant ultra-conservative gathering in British history. the Conservative leader, the person of color at the helm of the Tory party, is a staunch adversary of the racial justice movement, and we are in a position where a member of parliament feels emboldened to declare that “not seeing any white faces” in specific city neighborhoods is a reason for concern. Meanwhile, far-right parties are surging in Europe as a entirety.
In the United States, a colossal assault against DEI and affirmative action has been carried, often successfully, to the highest courts of the state. A effort to erase the history of people of color and experience from the records is under way. One of Donald Trump's initial presidential directives aimed at the museum of African American legacy, and the renowned cultural organization, accusing them of a “concerted and widespread effort to alter the country's historical narrative” by depicting the United States “as naturally discriminatory”.
Given these circumstances, the celebration illustrates how little it can be impactful if it is restricted to either dutiful corporate observances, or politically neutered festivities of former accomplishments, rather than challenging the situation of the current era. It also shows how its restricted time span means that it is disconnected from the more extensive continuous action that is needed. A university professor, a educator at University of Greenwich, articulated it most accurately when she voiced worries about the short-term symbolic gestures of the observance. “The problem with embracing a superficial method”, she stated, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month evolves into a transient display rather than a agent of progress.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Figuring out how to alter, change and broaden efforts for equal rights and acknowledgment in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a treacherous thing. There is a inclination to just eliminate events including Black History Month entirely, assuming they are no longer suitable, or are remnants of an period that has failed to deliver.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the complete comprehensive structure and heritage of racial movements – local anti-racism groups, inclusion and equity efforts, and yes, even those talks to businesses – constitute an foundation that a lot of work has gone into. It is there not merely to decline as the politics moves on (and in fact, declines), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a contemporary active Black History Month look like? Firstly, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is spread out through the year (as some institutions are already commencing), parts of its content (particularly around notable African descendants) incorporated into academic syllabi. It would also be a era that does not evade governmental matters, and leaves space for individuals, particularly the younger generation, to share their anxieties and narratives. What value has basic knowledge of the history when it ignores the current situation of extreme conservative demonstrations in the street? Organizations who observe it should not be pacified with the non-confrontational words of hidden discrimination and awareness of minor insults, but challenged by the risks that affect everyone if fight against prejudice is not taken seriously. In short, Black History Month should be made current, pressing, and responsive. Perhaps an entire name rebrand is required – Contemporary Black History Month.
