Black History Month serves as a mirror of the political moment, so how do we revamp it?
This is Black History Month in the UK, and it seems it’s time for a rethink. As time has passed, an observance that was initiated as a festivity and recollection of the past, cultural identity and bonds between Black populations worldwide, has taken on a business-like atmosphere, growing to encompass events where individuals of African heritage are paid to speak with predominantly white listeners about hidden biases and “allyship”. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade sparked an increase in the business of showcasing anti-racist commitment. But even that moment has passed. The surge has crested, leaving a sort of hollowed out legacy of what increasing understanding is for.
The Origins of Black History Observance
Originally observed in the America and its northern neighbor, Black History Month was established in 1962 as an observance of African American heritage by African American historian Carter G. Woodson with multiple days of commemoration and observance 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 North America in winter, but also in October in the UK, the Federal Republic of Germany, Ireland and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The period has transformed since that time, giving reduced attention to the accounts of transatlantic enslavement and fights for racial justice, and more on influential individuals of color in public life, creative fields, and advocacy, and extensively acknowledging the contribution Black people have made to shape the country. It is in learning environments where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with lectures and artistic activities. But the manner the celebration is observed is a reflection of the political moment. How it progresses is a valuable example in how assimilation leads to weakening: the transformation of Black History Month has impeded the point of it, which is to tackle structural and organizational discrimination.
A Troubling Time
Few things illustrate how crucial it is to rethink Black History Month as much as the particular moment in which it takes place this year. In the Britain, a revitalized conservative movement in the guise of the Reform organization is leading the polls. In the warmer months we witnessed the biggest extreme right demonstration in the UK's past. Kemi Badenoch, the Black leader of the Tory party, is a firm opponent of the racial justice movement, and we are in a situation where a legislator gains confidence to say that a lack of white people in certain urban areas is a cause for alarm. Simultaneously, far-right parties are expanding in Europe as a complete entity.
In the America, a significant offensive against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been carried, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the supreme judicial bodies of the state. A drive to erase African American heritage and narrative from the archives is ongoing. One of the political figure's first executive orders focused on the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the Smithsonian Institution, claiming they of a coordinated and broad attempt to rewrite our Nation’s history” by depicting the United States “as fundamentally prejudiced”.
In this context, the observance represents how insufficiently it can be impactful if it is confined to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or stripped of political content celebrations of historical achievements, rather than addressing the conditions of the contemporary world. It also reveals how its limited duration means that it is separated from the broader ongoing work that is necessary. Denise Miller, a prof at a learning establishment, expressed it perfectly when she voiced worries about the temporary “tokenism” of the month. “The problem with taking a tokenistic approach”, she commented, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month becomes a transient display rather than a agent of progress.”
Rethinking, But Not Jettisoning
Establishing how to adapt, revise and extend initiatives for racial equality and recognition in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a difficult task. There is a urge to just eliminate things like Black History Month completely, believing they are no longer suitable, or are relics of an time that has been ineffective.
However, regardless of the situation, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and tradition of activism for racial justice – community-based BLM initiatives, inclusion and equity efforts, and certainly, even commercial engagements – form an framework 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 living breathing thing.
So what would a new dynamic Black History Month appear as? Firstly, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is spread out across all seasons (as some institutions are already beginning to do), parts of its content (particularly around notable African descendants) integrated into academic syllabi. It would also be a time that does not shy away from governmental matters, and provides room for individuals, particularly young people, to express their concerns and stories. What value has basic knowledge of the past when it ignores the present reality of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the street? Institutions who observe it should not be reassured with the passive language of implicit prejudice and sensitivity to “microaggressions”, but confronted with the dangers that affect everyone if anti-racism is not taken seriously. In short, Black History Month should be made contemporary, pressing, and adaptive. Maybe an total re-identification is in order – Present-Day African Heritage Celebration.
