Black History Month is a reflection of the current political climate, so how do we revamp it?
It's Black History Month in the United Kingdom, and it appears it’s time for a rethink. Throughout its history, an event that started out as a celebration and reminder of heritage, traditions and links between global Black communities, has taken on a business-like atmosphere, broadening to incorporate functions where Black people are compensated to talk to predominantly white listeners about hidden biases and active solidarity. The demonstrations for racial justice in the 2020s generated a rise in the enterprise of demonstrating racial awareness. However, that period has concluded. The wave has peaked, leaving a sort of hollowed out legacy of what promoting consciousness is for.
The Origins of Black History Month
First commemorated in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was established in 1962 as an observance of African American heritage by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with multiple days of celebration and reflection in the middle of February. Black History Month evolved from this initiative and was publicly established in 1970. Today it is observed not only in the North America in February, but also in autumn in the United Kingdom, Deutschland, Éire and the Holland.
The observance has transformed since that time, placing less emphasis on the accounts of the slave trade across the Atlantic and fights for racial justice, and greater focus on prominent Black figures in public life, creative fields, and advocacy, and widely honoring the input Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in learning environments where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with talks and cultural events. But the way the month is commemorated is a manifestation of the contemporary political context. How it progresses is a good lesson in how co-option leads to dismantling: the restructuring 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 critical it is to reevaluate Black History Month as much as the particular moment in which it takes place this year. In the UK, a revitalized conservative movement in the form of the Reform party is top in opinion ratings. In the summer we observed the largest far-right rally in British history. Kemi Badenoch, the Black leader of the right-wing political group, is a strong critic of anti-racism activism, and we are in a position where a legislator feels emboldened to state that a lack of white people in certain urban areas is a reason for concern. Meanwhile, ultra-nationalist movements are expanding in the EU 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 nation. A effort to scrub the history of people of color and narrative from the archives is ongoing. One of the political figure's first executive orders aimed at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the prestigious establishment, accusing them of a coordinated and broad attempt to rewrite our Nation’s history” by portraying America “as fundamentally prejudiced”.
In this context, the observance symbolises how insufficiently it can be effective if it is limited to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or stripped of political content commemorations of historical achievements, rather than addressing the situation of the present. It also shows how its restricted time span means that it is detached from the wider consistent effort that is necessary. An academic expert, a educator at University of Greenwich, put it best when she raised concerns about the temporary “tokenism” of the month. “The difficulty with embracing a superficial method”, she commented, “is that it often means that Black History Month becomes a brief show rather than a catalyst for change.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Establishing how to alter, change and broaden initiatives for equal rights and acknowledgment in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a treacherous thing. There is a inclination to just eliminate events including Black History Month completely, assuming they are inadequate for current needs, or are relics of an era that has failed to deliver.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the complete comprehensive structure and legacy of activism for racial justice – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, DEI programs, and indeed, including corporate presentations – represent an infrastructure that a lot of work has gone into. It is there not only to deteriorate as the political landscape shifts (and in fact, deteriorates), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a fresh vibrant Black History Month look like? Firstly, it would be not just one concentrated month: something that is spread out through the year (as various establishments are already starting to implement), sections of its curriculum (particularly around notable African descendants) integrated into school curriculums. It would also be a era that does not evade politics, and provides room for individuals, particularly youth, to air their fears and experiences. What use is basic knowledge of the bygone era when it ignores the current situation of extreme conservative demonstrations in the public spaces? Institutions who mark it should not be reassured with the neutral terminology of “unconscious bias” and awareness of subtle slights, but confronted with the risks that affect everyone if fight against prejudice is not approached earnestly. To summarize, Black History Month should be made current, pressing, and responsive. Perhaps an complete renaming is necessary – Black History is Now Month.
