Black History Month serves as a mirror of the current political climate, so what steps can we take to refresh it?
This is Black History Month in the Britain, and it feels like it’s time for a rethink. Over the years, an event that started out as a commemorative event of the past, cultural identity and bonds between international African diaspora communities, has developed a business-like atmosphere, broadening to incorporate events where Black people are remunerated to speak with predominantly white listeners about hidden biases and active solidarity. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade sparked an increase in the industry of showcasing anti-racist commitment. Yet, that phase is now over. The tide has reached its height, producing a diluted aftermath of what raising awareness is for.
The History of Black History Celebration
Originally observed in the US 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 multiple days of commemoration and observance in the second week of February. Black History Month evolved from this campaign and was formally inaugurated in 1970. Today it is observed not only in the US and Canada in the second month, but also in October in the UK, Germany, Éire and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The period has transformed since those days, focusing less on the accounts of the slave trade across the Atlantic and civil rights battles, and greater focus on notable African descendants in politics, culture, and activism, and widely honoring the impact Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in educational institutions where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with talks and cultural events. But the way the celebration is commemorated is a reflection of the political moment. How it progresses is a instructive case in how assimilation leads to dismantling: the restructuring of Black History Month has stymied the purpose of it, which is to confront embedded and established prejudice.
A Jarring Moment
Little demonstrates how important it is to reconsider Black History Month more than the specific period in which it occurs this year. In the Britain, a revitalized conservative movement in the form of the Reform political group is top in opinion ratings. In the recent season we saw the biggest extreme right demonstration in British history. Kemi Badenoch, the African descendant in charge of the Tory party, is a firm opponent of Black Lives Matter, and we are in a situation where a member of parliament gains confidence to say that a lack of white people in parts of a city is a cause for alarm. Meanwhile, extreme conservative groups are growing in Europe as a complete entity.
In the US, a significant offensive against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been taken, frequently with success, to the supreme judicial bodies of the country. A campaign to remove Black history and narrative from the historical documents is ongoing. One of Donald Trump's early administrative commands focused on the institution dedicated to Black heritage, and the Smithsonian Institution, claiming they of a “concerted and widespread effort to alter the country's historical narrative” by depicting the United States “as fundamentally prejudiced”.
Given these circumstances, the month represents how minimally it can be impactful if it is confined to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or stripped of political content festivities of former accomplishments, rather than confronting the situation of the current era. It also demonstrates how its short period means that it is disconnected from the more extensive continuous action that is necessary. An academic expert, a educator at an educational institution, expressed it perfectly when she expressed apprehension about the short-term symbolic gestures of the month. “The difficulty with taking a tokenistic approach”, she commented, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month evolves into a brief show rather than a agent of progress.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Figuring out how to adapt, revise and extend initiatives for equal rights and acknowledgment in such times of discouragement and concern is a treacherous thing. There is a temptation to just do away with events including Black History Month completely, believing they are inadequate for current needs, or are relics of an time that has been ineffective.
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, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and yes, even those talks to businesses – form an infrastructure that a lot of work has been invested in. It is there not merely to decline as the political landscape shifts (and in fact, regresses), but to be a living breathing thing.
So what would a fresh vibrant Black History Month appear as? To begin with, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is dispersed through the year (as some institutions are already starting to implement), elements of its material (particularly around notable African descendants) included in academic syllabi. It would also be a era that does not avoid politics, and leaves space for citizens, particularly youth, to express their concerns and stories. What value has simple recognition of the bygone era when it doesn’t reckon with the current situation of far-right rallies in the public spaces? Establishments who celebrate it should not be reassured with the non-confrontational words of hidden discrimination and awareness of “microaggressions”, but faced with the risks that impact society if opposition to discrimination is not taken seriously. To summarize, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, urgent, and reactive. Maybe an complete renaming is required – Black History is Now Month.
