Black History Month serves as a mirror of the political moment, so what steps can we take to refresh it?
This is Black History Month in the United Kingdom, and it seems it’s time for a re-evaluation. Throughout its history, an event that started out as a festivity and recollection of heritage, traditions and links between Black populations worldwide, has developed a commercial tone, expanding to include events where individuals of African heritage are paid to speak with predominantly white listeners about implicit prejudice and “allyship”. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests generated a rise in the enterprise of demonstrating racial awareness. Yet, that phase is now over. The surge has crested, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what increasing understanding is for.
The Background of Black History Celebration
Originally observed in the America and its northern neighbor, Black History Month was created in 1962 as an observance of African American heritage by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with seven days of remembrance and recognition in the second week of February. Black History Month developed from this movement and was officially launched in 1970. Now it is celebrated not only in the North America in the second month, but also in autumn in the UK, Germany, Ireland and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The month has evolved since that time, focusing less on the accounts of colonial slavery and struggles for equality, and more on prominent Black figures in government, the arts, and social movements, and extensively acknowledging the contribution Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in educational institutions where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the manner the celebration is observed is a indication of the contemporary political context. How it progresses is a good lesson in how appropriation leads to dismantling: the reshaping of Black History Month has stymied the objective of it, which is to tackle embedded and established prejudice.
A Disconcerting Period
Hardly anything shows how critical it is to reconsider Black History Month more than the current time in which it occurs this year. In the United Kingdom, a revitalized conservative movement in the guise of the Reform political group is ahead in surveys. In the summer we witnessed the biggest extreme right demonstration in British history. Kemi Badenoch, the African descendant in charge of the right-wing political group, is a strong critic of Black Lives Matter, and we are in a situation where a legislator feels empowered to state that a lack of white people in parts of a city is a reason for concern. At the same time, ultra-nationalist movements are surging in the EU as a whole.
In the America, a colossal assault against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been brought, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the highest courts of the country. A campaign to scrub African American heritage and legacy from the historical documents is ongoing. One of Donald Trump's initial presidential directives aimed at the museum of African American legacy, and the renowned cultural organization, claiming they of a coordinated and broad attempt to rewrite our Nation’s history” by portraying America “as inherently racist”.
Given these circumstances, the observance represents how little it can be influential if it is confined to either dutiful corporate observances, or depoliticized commemorations of historical achievements, rather than addressing the situation of the current era. It also reveals how its short period means that it is separated from the broader ongoing work that is necessary. Denise Miller, a professor at an educational institution, put it best when she voiced worries about the temporary “tokenism” of the celebration. “The problem with embracing a superficial method”, she wrote, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month evolves into a fleeting performance rather than a driver of transformation.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Establishing how to adjust, modify and expand actions for fair treatment and appreciation in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a treacherous thing. There is a temptation to just do away with events including Black History Month altogether, assuming they are no longer suitable, or are relics of an time that has been ineffective.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and tradition of racial movements – community-based BLM initiatives, DEI programs, and indeed, including corporate presentations – form an infrastructure 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 vital organism.
So what would a new dynamic Black History Month appear as? Well, first, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is dispersed across all seasons (as certain organizations are already beginning to do), parts of its content (particularly around notable African descendants) incorporated into educational programs. It would also be a era that does not evade politics, and allows opportunity for citizens, particularly the younger generation, to share their anxieties and narratives. What use is basic knowledge of the history when it fails to address the current situation of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the public spaces? Establishments who observe it should not be comforted with the non-confrontational words of “unconscious bias” and awareness of minor insults, but confronted with the dangers that impact society if anti-racism is not taken seriously. To summarize, Black History Month should be made current, urgent, and responsive. Perhaps an entire name rebrand is required – Contemporary Black History Month.
