The annual Black History observance is a reflection of the prevailing political atmosphere, so what steps can we take to refresh it?
This is Black History Month in the UK, and it feels like it’s time for a reassessment. Throughout its history, an event that started out as a commemorative event of the past, cultural identity and bonds between Black populations worldwide, has developed a corporate feel, expanding to include events where individuals of African heritage are remunerated to speak with Caucasian groups about implicit prejudice and “allyship”. The demonstrations for racial justice in the 2020s generated a rise in the industry of displaying cultural sensitivity. But even that moment has passed. The wave has crested, producing a diluted aftermath of what increasing understanding is for.
The Origins of Black History Month
Initially celebrated in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was established in 1962 as a week dedicated to Negro history by historian of African descent Carter G. Woodson with multiple days of remembrance and recognition in the second week of February. Black History Month developed from this movement and was officially launched in 1970. Today it is observed not only in the North America in winter, but also in October in the United Kingdom, Germany, Éire and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The period has evolved since those days, placing less emphasis on the histories of transatlantic enslavement and struggles for equality, and greater focus on prominent Black figures in public life, creative fields, and advocacy, and widely honoring the contribution Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in educational institutions where Black History Month is most regularly observed, with lectures and artistic activities. But the way the celebration is commemorated is a indication of the political moment. How it develops is a instructive case in how appropriation leads to erosion: the reshaping of Black History Month has hindered the point of it, which is to address embedded and established prejudice.
A Troubling Time
Hardly anything shows how crucial it is to rethink Black History Month as much as the current time in which it occurs this year. In the UK, a reemerging right-wing in the form of the Reform organization is leading the polls. In the recent season we saw the largest far-right rally in the UK's past. Kemi Badenoch, the Black leader of the Tory party, is a firm opponent of Black Lives Matter, and we are in a position where a elected representative feels empowered to declare that a lack of white people in certain urban areas is a source of worry. Simultaneously, extreme conservative groups are surging in the EU as a complete entity.
In the America, a massive attack against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been carried, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the supreme judicial bodies of the state. A effort to scrub the history of people of color and legacy from the records is in progress. One of the former president's initial presidential directives focused on the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the Smithsonian Institution, accusing them of a organized and extensive campaign to change the national past” by depicting the United States “as naturally discriminatory”.
Given these circumstances, the observance represents how little it can be impactful if it is limited to either dutiful corporate observances, or stripped of political content festivities of former accomplishments, rather than confronting the situation of the contemporary world. It also shows how its restricted time span means that it is detached from the broader ongoing work that is required. Denise Miller, a prof at University of Greenwich, articulated it most accurately when she voiced worries about the fleeting superficial actions of the celebration. “The difficulty with taking a tokenistic approach”, she wrote, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month becomes a brief show rather than a catalyst for change.”
Reconsidering, Not Discarding
Establishing how to adjust, modify and expand initiatives for equal rights and acknowledgment in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a difficult task. There is a temptation to just discontinue events including Black History Month altogether, believing they are no longer suitable, or are vestiges of an time that has not worked.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the complete comprehensive structure and tradition of campaigns for equality – community-based BLM initiatives, inclusion and equity efforts, and indeed, including corporate presentations – form an infrastructure that a significant effort has been invested in. It is there not merely to decline as the situation evolves (and in fact, declines), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a fresh vibrant Black History Month seem? To begin with, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is dispersed across all seasons (as certain organizations are already commencing), parts of its content (particularly around notable African descendants) incorporated into academic syllabi. It would also be a period that does not shy away from political issues, and allows opportunity for people, particularly young people, to share their anxieties and narratives. What value has simple recognition of the history when it doesn’t reckon with the contemporary truth of far-right rallies in the public spaces? Institutions who observe it should not be pacified with the non-confrontational words of “unconscious bias” and sensitivity to “microaggressions”, but confronted with the risks that impact society if fight against prejudice is not treated with importance. In short, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, critical, and adaptive. Perhaps an entire name rebrand is required – Black History is Now Month.
