This commemorative month acts as a gauge of the prevailing political atmosphere, so how do we revamp it?
This is Black History Month in the Britain, and it seems it’s time for a rethink. Throughout its history, an celebration that was initiated as a festivity and recollection of heritage, traditions and links between international African diaspora communities, has taken on a business-like atmosphere, broadening to incorporate gatherings where African descendants are paid to talk to predominantly white listeners about implicit prejudice and active solidarity. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests generated a rise in the business of displaying cultural sensitivity. However, that period has concluded. The tide has reached its height, producing a diluted aftermath of what raising awareness is for.
The History of Black History Month
Initially celebrated in the US and Canada, Black History Month was created in 1962 as “Negro History Week” by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with seven days of celebration and reflection in the second week of February. Black History Month evolved from this initiative and was officially launched in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the United States and Canada in winter, but also in October in the Britain, the Federal Republic of Germany, Éire and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The observance has developed since that time, focusing less on the histories of transatlantic enslavement and struggles for equality, and increasingly on influential individuals of color in public life, creative fields, and advocacy, and broadly celebrating the impact Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in educational institutions where Black History Month is most commonly celebrated, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the way the celebration is commemorated is a reflection of the political moment. How it progresses is a instructive case in how co-option leads to weakening: the transformation of Black History Month has hindered the point of it, which is to confront systemic and institutional racism.
A Disconcerting Period
Little demonstrates how crucial it is to rethink Black History Month as much as the current time in which it takes place this year. In the United Kingdom, a reemerging right-wing in the form of the Reform political group is ahead in surveys. In the warmer months we observed the largest far-right rally in the history of Britain. the Conservative leader, the person of color at the helm of the Tory party, is a staunch adversary of Black Lives Matter, and we are in a place where a legislator gains confidence to declare that a lack of white people in certain urban areas is a cause for alarm. Simultaneously, extreme conservative groups are surging in the EU as a whole.
In the US, a colossal assault against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been brought, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the top legal institutions of the nation. A drive to remove the history of people of color and narrative from the records is ongoing. One of the former president's initial presidential directives aimed at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the prestigious establishment, accusing them of a “concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our Nation’s history” by portraying America “as inherently racist”.
Against this backdrop, the celebration illustrates how minimally it can be impactful if it is limited to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or depoliticized festivities of former accomplishments, rather than confronting the realities of the contemporary world. It also demonstrates how its limited duration means that it is detached from the broader ongoing work that is necessary. An academic expert, a educator at an educational institution, put it best when she raised concerns about the fleeting superficial actions of the celebration. “The issue with taking a tokenistic approach”, she commented, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month becomes a transient display rather than a catalyst for change.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Determining how to adjust, modify and expand actions for racial equality and recognition in such times of discouragement and concern is a treacherous thing. There is a urge to just discontinue things like Black History Month completely, thinking they are no longer suitable, or are remnants of an period that has not worked.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the complete comprehensive structure and legacy of activism for racial justice – local anti-racism groups, DEI programs, and yes, even those talks to businesses – form an framework that a significant effort has been invested in. It is there not only to deteriorate as the politics moves on (and in fact, regresses), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a new dynamic Black History Month appear as? To begin with, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is distributed throughout the annual calendar (as various establishments are already beginning to do), sections of its curriculum (particularly around historic Black characters) included in educational programs. It would also be a time that does not avoid governmental matters, and leaves space for individuals, particularly the younger generation, to air their fears and experiences. What use is mere awareness of the bygone era when it fails to address the contemporary truth of extreme conservative demonstrations in the public spaces? Institutions who mark it should not be comforted with the non-confrontational words of “unconscious bias” and alertness to “microaggressions”, but confronted with the dangers that impact society if opposition to discrimination is not approached earnestly. To summarize, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, urgent, and responsive. Perhaps an total re-identification is in order – Black History is Now Month.
