Black History Month is a reflection of the prevailing political atmosphere, so what steps can we take to refresh it?
We are in Black History Month in the UK, and it feels like it’s time for a rethink. As time has passed, an event that was initiated as a celebration and reminder of heritage, traditions and links between global Black communities, has taken on a business-like atmosphere, expanding to include functions where African descendants are paid to talk to white audiences about “unconscious bias” and “allyship”. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade generated a rise in the enterprise of displaying cultural sensitivity. However, that period has concluded. The wave has peaked, leaving a sort of hollowed out legacy of what promoting consciousness is for.
The History of Black History Celebration
Originally observed in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was conceived in 1962 as a week dedicated to Negro history by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with seven days of remembrance and recognition in the February's second week. Black History Month developed from this campaign and was publicly established in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the US and Canada in winter, but also in October in the United Kingdom, Germany, Éire and the Holland.
The observance has transformed since those days, placing less emphasis on the accounts of colonial slavery and struggles for equality, and greater focus on notable African descendants in politics, culture, and activism, and widely honoring the contribution Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in schools where Black History Month is most commonly celebrated, with talks and cultural events. But the method the month is observed is a indication of the current political situation. How it develops is a instructive case in how assimilation leads to erosion: the transformation of Black History Month has hindered the objective of it, which is to tackle structural and organizational discrimination.
A Disconcerting Period
Little demonstrates how crucial it is to reevaluate Black History Month as much as the current time in which it takes place this year. In the Britain, a revitalized conservative movement in the guise of the Reform political group is ahead in surveys. In the warmer months we saw the biggest extreme right demonstration in British history. Kemi Badenoch, the Black leader of the Tory party, is a strong critic of the racial justice movement, and we are in a position where a legislator feels emboldened to say that “not seeing any white faces” in certain urban areas is a reason for concern. Simultaneously, far-right parties are growing in Europe as a entirety.
In the United States, a significant offensive against DEI and affirmative action has been brought, frequently with success, to the top legal institutions of the nation. A campaign to erase the history of people of color and legacy from the archives is in progress. One of the political figure's first executive orders targeted the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the renowned cultural organization, accusing them of a “concerted and widespread effort to alter the country's historical narrative” by representing the nation “as fundamentally prejudiced”.
Against this backdrop, the celebration symbolises how minimally it can be influential if it is restricted to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or politically neutered festivities of historical achievements, rather than challenging 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. Denise Miller, a professor at University of Greenwich, expressed it perfectly when she voiced worries about the temporary “tokenism” of the celebration. “The problem with embracing a superficial method”, she commented, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month turns into a fleeting performance rather than a catalyst for change.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Figuring out how to adjust, modify and expand actions for racial equality and recognition in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a difficult task. There is a temptation to just discontinue events including Black History Month completely, assuming they are no longer suitable, or are remnants of an period that has not worked.
Yet, in spite of all this, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and legacy of campaigns for equality – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, inclusion and equity efforts, and yes, even those talks to businesses – form an foundation that a considerable labor has been invested in. It is there not only to deteriorate as the politics moves on (and in fact, regresses), but to be a vital organism.
So what would a contemporary active Black History Month seem? Firstly, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is spread out across all seasons (as some institutions are already starting to implement), parts of its content (particularly around historic Black characters) included in academic syllabi. It would also be a period that does not evade governmental matters, and leaves space for people, particularly the younger generation, to air their fears and experiences. What purpose serves basic knowledge of the history when it fails to address the present reality of far-right rallies in the public spaces? Institutions who observe it should not be pacified with the neutral terminology of “unconscious bias” and sensitivity to subtle slights, but faced with the threats that face all if fight against prejudice is not treated with importance. To summarize, Black History Month should be made current, pressing, and responsive. It could be that an entire name rebrand is required – Present-Day African Heritage Celebration.
