The annual Black History observance is a reflection of the current political climate, so in what ways can we modernize it?
This is Black History Month in the United Kingdom, and it appears it’s time for a reassessment. As time has passed, an observance that was initiated as a celebration and reminder of the past, cultural identity and bonds between global Black communities, has adopted a commercial tone, expanding to include events where individuals of African heritage are compensated to talk to white audiences about implicit prejudice and “allyship”. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests generated a rise in the enterprise of showcasing anti-racist commitment. But even that moment has passed. The surge has peaked, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what raising awareness is for.
The History of Black History Month
Initially celebrated in the US and Canada, Black History Month was created in 1962 as a week dedicated to Negro history by African American historian Carter G. Woodson with a week of remembrance and recognition in the middle of February. Black History Month grew out of this initiative and was officially launched in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the North America in February, but also in October in the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, Éire and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The period has transformed since those days, placing less emphasis on the narratives of the slave trade across the Atlantic and fights for racial justice, and greater focus on influential individuals of color in politics, culture, and activism, and widely honoring the impact Black people have made to shape the country. It is in learning environments where Black History Month is most commonly celebrated, with lectures and artistic activities. But the method the celebration is observed is a reflection of the contemporary political context. How it evolves is a valuable example in how assimilation leads to dismantling: the transformation of Black History Month has hindered the objective of it, which is to confront embedded and established prejudice.
A Troubling Time
Little demonstrates how critical it is to reconsider Black History Month better than the specific period in which it takes place this year. In the Britain, a resurgent right in the shape of the Reform political group is ahead in surveys. In the warmer months we saw the biggest extreme right demonstration in the history of Britain. Kemi Badenoch, the Black leader of the Tory party, is a staunch adversary of the racial justice movement, and we are in a situation where a legislator feels empowered to declare that a lack of white people in specific city neighborhoods is a source of worry. Simultaneously, far-right parties are growing in Europe as a whole.
In the US, a massive attack against DEI and affirmative action has been brought, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the supreme judicial bodies of the nation. A campaign to erase the history of people of color and narrative from the archives is in progress. One of Donald Trump's initial presidential directives aimed at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the Smithsonian Institution, accusing them of a “concerted and widespread effort to change the national past” by portraying America “as naturally discriminatory”.
Given these circumstances, the observance illustrates how minimally it can be influential if it is confined to either obligatory business commemorations, or politically neutered commemorations of historical achievements, rather than confronting the realities of the current era. It also demonstrates how its limited duration means that it is disconnected from the broader ongoing work that is necessary. An academic expert, a prof at University of Greenwich, expressed it perfectly when she raised concerns about the fleeting superficial actions of the month. “The issue with embracing a superficial method”, she stated, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month becomes a fleeting performance rather than a agent of progress.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Establishing how to adjust, modify and expand initiatives for racial equality and recognition in such moments of dejection and worry is a challenging endeavor. There is a urge to just discontinue things like Black History Month altogether, believing they are inadequate for current needs, or are remnants of an era that has failed to deliver.
Yet, in spite of all this, Black History Month, and in fact the entire extended network and legacy of activism for racial justice – community-based BLM initiatives, inclusion and equity efforts, and yes, even those talks to businesses – constitute an framework that a lot of work has been invested in. It is there not just to decay as the situation evolves (and in fact, deteriorates), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a new dynamic Black History Month appear as? Firstly, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is dispersed through the year (as various establishments are already starting to implement), sections of its curriculum (particularly around historic Black characters) included in academic syllabi. It would also be a time that does not shy away from political issues, and leaves space for citizens, particularly young people, to share their anxieties and narratives. What purpose serves basic knowledge of the past when it ignores the contemporary truth of extreme conservative demonstrations in the street? Organizations who observe it should not be comforted with the passive language of hidden discrimination and awareness of minor insults, but challenged by the threats that face all if opposition to discrimination is not treated with importance. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, urgent, and responsive. Perhaps an entire name rebrand is required – Present-Day African Heritage Celebration.
