The annual Black History observance acts as a gauge 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. Over the years, an event that was initiated as a celebration and reminder of the past, cultural identity and bonds between Black populations worldwide, has developed a corporate feel, expanding to include gatherings where individuals of African heritage are compensated to address Caucasian groups about “unconscious bias” and supportive partnership. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests created a surge in the industry of showcasing anti-racist commitment. Yet, that phase is now over. The wave has peaked, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what promoting consciousness is for.
The Background of Black History Observance
Initially celebrated 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 February's second week. Black History Month grew out of this movement and was formally inaugurated in 1970. Today it is observed not only in the US and Canada in February, but also in October in the UK, the Federal Republic of Germany, the Republic of Ireland and the Netherlands.
The period has transformed since that time, placing less emphasis on the accounts of the slave trade across the Atlantic and fights for racial justice, and increasingly on prominent Black figures in politics, culture, and activism, and widely honoring the input Black people have made to shape the country. It is in schools where Black History Month is most commonly celebrated, with talks and cultural events. But the method the celebration is celebrated is a manifestation of the current political situation. How it develops is a valuable example in how appropriation leads to erosion: the reshaping of Black History Month has impeded the point of it, which is to address structural and organizational discrimination.
A Disconcerting Period
Few things illustrate how crucial it is to reconsider Black History Month better than the specific period in which it falls this year. In the UK, a revitalized conservative movement in the guise of the Reform political group is leading the polls. In the warmer months we observed the largest far-right rally in the UK's past. Kemi Badenoch, the person of color at the helm of the Conservative party, is a firm opponent of the racial justice movement, and we are in a situation where a legislator feels emboldened to declare that “not seeing any white faces” in parts of a city is a reason for concern. Simultaneously, far-right parties are expanding in the European continent as a whole.
In the America, a significant offensive against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been taken, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the top legal institutions of the state. A campaign to remove Black history and narrative from the historical documents is in progress. One of Donald Trump's early administrative commands targeted the institution dedicated to Black heritage, and the prestigious establishment, accusing them of a organized and extensive campaign to alter the country's historical narrative” by depicting the United States “as naturally discriminatory”.
Against this backdrop, the observance represents how minimally it can be influential if it is confined to either obligatory business commemorations, or politically neutered commemorations of contributions in the past, rather than confronting the situation of the current era. It also reveals how its short period means that it is disconnected from the broader ongoing work that is required. Denise Miller, a educator at a learning establishment, put it best when she expressed apprehension about the temporary “tokenism” of the celebration. “The problem with taking a tokenistic approach”, she commented, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month turns into a transient display rather than a driver of transformation.”
Reconsidering, Not Discarding
Establishing how to alter, change and broaden efforts for equal rights and acknowledgment in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a challenging endeavor. There is a inclination to just discontinue events including Black History Month altogether, assuming they are simply not fit for purpose, or are relics of an period that has not worked.
Yet, in spite of all this, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and tradition of racial movements – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and indeed, including corporate presentations – form an foundation that a significant effort has been dedicated to. 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 contemporary active Black History Month look like? Firstly, it would be not just one concentrated month: something that is distributed throughout the annual calendar (as various establishments are already starting to implement), elements of its material (particularly around historic Black characters) incorporated into school curriculums. It would also be a era that does not avoid political issues, and leaves space for people, particularly the younger generation, to share their anxieties and narratives. What purpose serves mere awareness of the past when it ignores the current situation of extreme conservative demonstrations in the public spaces? Organizations who observe it should not be comforted with the non-confrontational words of implicit prejudice and sensitivity to “microaggressions”, but challenged by the threats that face all if anti-racism is not treated with importance. In short, Black History Month should be made contemporary, urgent, and reactive. Maybe an total re-identification is necessary – Black History is Now Month.
