The annual Black History observance is a reflection of the political moment, so what steps can we take to refresh it?
It's Black History Month in the United Kingdom, and it feels like it’s time for a reassessment. As time has passed, an observance that started out as a festivity and recollection of heritage, traditions and links between Black populations worldwide, has taken on a commercial tone, broadening to incorporate events where Black people are paid to talk to white audiences about hidden biases and supportive partnership. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests created a surge in the business of showcasing anti-racist commitment. But even that moment has passed. The tide has peaked, producing a diluted aftermath of what raising awareness is for.
The History of Black History Celebration
Originally observed in the America and its northern neighbor, Black History Month was established in 1962 as a week dedicated to Negro history by African American historian Carter G. Woodson with seven days of remembrance and recognition in the second week of February. Black History Month grew out of this campaign and was publicly established in 1970. Today it is observed not only in the United States and Canada in February, but also in October in the United Kingdom, Deutschland, Ireland and the Holland.
The period has transformed since that time, placing less emphasis on the histories of colonial slavery and civil rights battles, and increasingly on influential individuals of color in public life, creative fields, and advocacy, and extensively acknowledging 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 method the celebration is commemorated is a reflection of the political moment. How it develops is a valuable example in how appropriation leads to erosion: the reshaping of Black History Month has hindered the point of it, which is to address systemic and institutional racism.
A Disconcerting Period
Little demonstrates how critical it is to rethink Black History Month better than the specific period in which it falls this year. In the United Kingdom, a resurgent right in the shape of the Reform party is ahead in surveys. In the recent season we witnessed the most significant ultra-conservative gathering in the history of Britain. the Conservative leader, the person of color at the helm of the Conservative party, is a strong critic of the racial justice movement, and we are in a place where a elected representative feels empowered to say that a lack of white people in parts of a city is a cause for alarm. Simultaneously, far-right parties are expanding in the EU as a whole.
In the United States, a colossal assault against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been brought, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the top legal institutions of the country. A drive to scrub Black history and narrative from the historical documents is under way. One of Donald Trump's early administrative commands aimed at the institution dedicated to Black heritage, and the renowned cultural organization, accusing them of a coordinated and broad attempt to alter the country's historical narrative” by portraying America “as fundamentally prejudiced”.
Given these circumstances, the month represents how insufficiently it can be impactful if it is restricted to either obligatory business commemorations, or politically neutered festivities of former accomplishments, rather than addressing the conditions of the contemporary world. It also reveals how its limited duration means that it is detached from the more extensive continuous action that is needed. A university professor, a educator at a learning establishment, put it best when she raised concerns about the short-term symbolic gestures of the observance. “The difficulty with embracing a superficial method”, she commented, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month turns into a transient display rather than a driver of transformation.”
Reconsidering, Not Discarding
Figuring out how to adapt, revise and extend efforts for equal rights and acknowledgment in such moments of dejection and worry is a treacherous thing. There is a urge to just do away with observances such as Black History Month entirely, thinking they are no longer suitable, or are relics of an time that has not worked.
However, regardless of the situation, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and legacy of racial movements – community-based BLM initiatives, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and certainly, even commercial engagements – constitute an foundation that a lot of work has gone into. It is there not only to deteriorate as the politics moves on (and in fact, declines), but to be a dynamic entity.
So what would a new dynamic Black History Month appear as? Well, first, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is spread out through the year (as some institutions are already beginning to do), elements of its material (particularly around prominent figures of color) included in academic syllabi. It would also be a period that does not evade politics, and leaves space for individuals, particularly young people, to share their anxieties and narratives. What purpose serves basic knowledge of the history when it fails to address the present reality of far-right rallies in the urban areas? Organizations who celebrate it should not be reassured with the neutral terminology of hidden discrimination and alertness to minor insults, but confronted with the dangers that impact society if anti-racism is not taken seriously. In short, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, urgent, and reactive. Maybe an complete renaming is necessary – Present-Day African Heritage Celebration.
