The annual Black History observance serves as a mirror of the current political climate, so in what ways can we modernize it?
This is Black History Month in the UK, and it feels like it’s time for a rethink. As time has passed, an observance that was initiated as a commemorative event of history, culture and the connections between international African diaspora communities, has developed a corporate feel, expanding to include functions where Black people are paid to talk to white audiences about hidden biases and active solidarity. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade sparked an increase in the industry of displaying cultural sensitivity. Yet, that phase is now over. The surge has crested, leaving a sort of hollowed out legacy of what promoting consciousness is for.
The Background of Black History Month
First commemorated in the America and its northern neighbor, Black History Month was established in 1962 as an observance of African American heritage by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with seven days of commemoration and observance 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 US and Canada in February, but also in October in the United Kingdom, Deutschland, Éire and the Netherlands.
The period has evolved since those days, focusing less on the histories of the slave trade across the Atlantic and civil rights battles, and more on notable African descendants in government, the arts, and social movements, and widely honoring the input Black people have made to mold society. It is in schools where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with lectures and artistic activities. But the way the celebration is celebrated is a indication of the current political situation. How it progresses is a instructive case in how appropriation leads to erosion: the transformation of Black History Month has impeded the objective of it, which is to tackle structural and organizational discrimination.
A Disconcerting Period
Little demonstrates how critical it is to rethink Black History Month more than the particular moment in which it takes place this year. In the Britain, a resurgent right in the shape of the Reform political group is leading the polls. In the summer we witnessed the biggest extreme right demonstration in the history of Britain. Kemi Badenoch, the person of color at the helm of the Conservative party, is a strong critic of anti-racism activism, and we are in a position where a legislator feels empowered to say that the absence of Caucasian individuals in specific city neighborhoods is a cause for alarm. Meanwhile, far-right parties are surging in the EU as a complete entity.
In the United States, a significant offensive against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been taken, frequently with success, to the top legal institutions of the state. A campaign to remove Black history 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, claiming they of a coordinated and broad attempt to rewrite our Nation’s history” by depicting the United States “as fundamentally prejudiced”.
Given these circumstances, the month illustrates how insufficiently it can be influential if it is limited to either obligatory business commemorations, or stripped of political content commemorations of former accomplishments, rather than challenging the realities of the present. It also demonstrates how its limited duration means that it is disconnected from the wider consistent effort that is required. An academic expert, a prof at an educational institution, articulated it most accurately when she raised concerns about the temporary “tokenism” of the observance. “The difficulty with embracing a superficial method”, she stated, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month turns into a transient display rather than a catalyst for change.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Establishing how to adjust, modify and expand actions for racial equality and recognition in such moments of dejection and worry is a challenging endeavor. There is a temptation to just do away with observances such as Black History Month altogether, believing they are simply not fit for purpose, or are remnants of an period that has not worked.
Yet, in spite of all this, Black History Month, and in fact the complete comprehensive structure and tradition of activism for racial justice – local anti-racism groups, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and certainly, even commercial engagements – represent an framework that a lot of work has been invested in. It is there not merely to decline as the politics moves on (and in fact, declines), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a fresh vibrant Black History Month appear as? Firstly, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is spread out through the year (as certain organizations are already commencing), parts of its content (particularly around historic Black characters) integrated into academic syllabi. It would also be a time that does not avoid governmental matters, and leaves space for people, particularly young people, to air their fears and experiences. What use is mere awareness of the past when it fails to address the contemporary truth of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the public spaces? Institutions who observe it should not be reassured with the passive language of “unconscious bias” and awareness of subtle slights, but challenged by the dangers that impact society if anti-racism is not taken seriously. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made current, urgent, and responsive. Maybe an total re-identification is necessary – Black History is Now Month.
