Black History Month is a reflection of the current political climate, so what steps can we take to refresh it?
It's Black History Month in the UK, and it feels like it’s time for a re-evaluation. Throughout its history, an celebration that started out as a commemorative event of the past, cultural identity and bonds between Black populations worldwide, has taken on a corporate feel, expanding to include events where individuals of African heritage are paid to address predominantly white listeners about implicit prejudice and “allyship”. The demonstrations for racial justice in the 2020s sparked an increase in the industry of displaying cultural sensitivity. However, that period has concluded. The surge has crested, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what promoting consciousness is for.
The Background of Black History Observance
Originally observed in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was conceived in 1962 as a week dedicated to Negro history by historian of African descent Carter G. Woodson with seven days of celebration and reflection in the February's second week. Black History Month developed from this initiative and was publicly established in 1970. Now it is celebrated not only in the North America in the second month, but also in autumn in the Britain, Deutschland, Éire and the Netherlands.
The month has transformed since that time, focusing less on the accounts of colonial slavery and fights for racial justice, and more on influential individuals of color in politics, culture, and activism, and widely honoring the contribution Black people have made to shape the country. It is in educational institutions where Black History Month is most commonly celebrated, with lectures and artistic activities. But the way the month is commemorated is a manifestation of the contemporary political context. How it develops is a instructive case in how co-option leads to erosion: the reshaping of Black History Month has stymied the point of it, which is to address systemic and institutional racism.
A Jarring Moment
Little demonstrates how crucial it is to reconsider Black History Month better than the current time in which it occurs this year. In the United Kingdom, a revitalized conservative movement in the shape of the Reform organization is ahead in surveys. In the warmer months we witnessed the largest far-right rally in the history of Britain. Kemi Badenoch, the person of color at the helm of the Conservative party, is a staunch adversary of anti-racism activism, and we are in a situation where a elected representative feels emboldened to state that “not seeing any white faces” in parts of a city is a cause for alarm. Meanwhile, far-right parties are growing in the EU as a complete entity.
In the America, a significant offensive against inclusion programs and preferential policies has been brought, often successfully, to the top legal institutions of the nation. A effort to erase Black history and legacy from the records is ongoing. One of the political figure's first executive orders focused on the institution dedicated to Black heritage, and the Smithsonian Institution, alleging that they of a coordinated and broad attempt to alter the country's historical narrative” by depicting the United States “as inherently racist”.
Against this backdrop, the month represents how little it can be effective if it is restricted to either obligatory business commemorations, or politically neutered commemorations of contributions in the past, rather than confronting the conditions of the present. It also shows how its limited duration means that it is disconnected from the broader ongoing work that is required. An academic expert, a professor at an educational institution, articulated it most accurately when she raised concerns about the short-term symbolic gestures of the celebration. “The issue with adopting a symbolic stance”, she wrote, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month becomes a brief show rather than a catalyst for change.”
Reconsidering, Not Discarding
Figuring out how to alter, change and broaden actions for racial equality and recognition in such times of discouragement and concern is a treacherous thing. There is a urge to just eliminate observances such as Black History Month entirely, assuming they are inadequate for current needs, or are remnants of an time that has failed to deliver.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and tradition of racial movements – community-based BLM initiatives, inclusion and equity efforts, and indeed, including corporate presentations – form an framework that a considerable labor has gone into. It is there not merely to decline as the politics moves on (and in fact, regresses), but to be a living breathing thing.
So what would a new dynamic Black History Month seem? Firstly, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is dispersed throughout the annual calendar (as certain organizations are already starting to implement), sections of its curriculum (particularly around notable African descendants) integrated into academic syllabi. It would also be a period that does not shy away from governmental matters, and allows opportunity for individuals, particularly the younger generation, to express their concerns and stories. What value has simple recognition of the history when it doesn’t reckon with the present reality of far-right rallies in the public spaces? Organizations who observe it should not be comforted with the passive language of hidden discrimination and alertness to “microaggressions”, but challenged by the threats that affect everyone if fight against prejudice is not approached earnestly. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made current, urgent, and responsive. Perhaps an total re-identification is in order – Contemporary Black History Month.
