This commemorative month is a reflection of the current political climate, so in what ways can we modernize it?
This is Black History Month in the Britain, and it feels like it’s time for a re-evaluation. Throughout its history, an celebration that was initiated as a festivity and recollection of history, culture and the connections between Black populations worldwide, has taken on a commercial tone, broadening to incorporate gatherings where African descendants are paid to talk to predominantly white listeners about “unconscious bias” and active solidarity. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests sparked an increase in the business of showcasing anti-racist commitment. However, that period has concluded. The surge has reached its height, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what increasing understanding is for.
The Origins of Black History Month
First commemorated in the America and its northern neighbor, Black History Month was established in 1962 as “Negro History Week” by historian of African descent Carter G. Woodson with a week of celebration and reflection in the middle of February. Black History Month grew out of this movement and was publicly established in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the US and Canada in February, but also in autumn in the UK, the Federal Republic of Germany, Éire and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The month has developed since those days, placing less emphasis on the accounts of colonial slavery and struggles for equality, and greater focus on prominent Black figures in public life, creative fields, and advocacy, and broadly celebrating the impact Black people have made to mold society. It is in schools where Black History Month is most regularly observed, with talks and cultural events. But the manner the month is celebrated is a reflection of the contemporary political context. How it develops is a good lesson in how co-option leads to dismantling: the transformation of Black History Month has hindered the point of it, which is to address structural and organizational discrimination.
A Jarring Moment
Little demonstrates how crucial it is to reconsider Black History Month as much as the particular moment in which it falls this year. In the UK, a revitalized conservative movement in the shape of the Reform political group is leading the polls. In the recent season we observed the most significant ultra-conservative gathering in British history. Kemi Badenoch, the Black leader of the right-wing political group, is a strong critic of Black Lives Matter, and we are in a position where a legislator feels empowered to state that the absence of Caucasian individuals in parts of a city is a reason for concern. At the same time, far-right parties are growing in the European continent as a complete entity.
In the America, a colossal assault against inclusion programs and preferential policies has been brought, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the highest courts of the country. A drive to erase Black history and experience 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, claiming they of a “concerted and widespread effort to change the national past” by representing the nation “as naturally discriminatory”.
In this context, the month illustrates how insufficiently it can be impactful if it is restricted to either obligatory business commemorations, or depoliticized celebrations of contributions in the past, rather than confronting the realities of the current era. It also shows how its limited duration means that it is separated from the more extensive continuous action that is required. An academic expert, a prof at University of Greenwich, expressed it perfectly when she voiced worries about the fleeting superficial actions of the celebration. “The difficulty with embracing a superficial method”, she wrote, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month becomes a fleeting performance rather than a agent of progress.”
Reevaluating, Not Abandoning
Figuring out how to adapt, revise and extend initiatives for fair treatment and appreciation in such moments of dejection and worry is a difficult task. There is a urge to just do away with events including Black History Month completely, thinking they are simply not fit for purpose, or are relics of an time that has been ineffective.
Yet, in spite of all this, Black History Month, and in fact the complete comprehensive structure and tradition of activism for racial justice – community-based BLM initiatives, inclusion and equity efforts, 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 situation evolves (and in fact, deteriorates), but to be a living breathing thing.
So what would a fresh vibrant Black History Month appear as? To begin with, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is distributed through the year (as some institutions are already commencing), sections of its curriculum (particularly around notable African descendants) incorporated into academic syllabi. It would also be a era that does not shy away from political issues, and allows opportunity for citizens, particularly the younger generation, to share their anxieties and narratives. What purpose serves basic knowledge of the history when it ignores the present reality of far-right rallies in the public spaces? Institutions who mark it should not be comforted with the non-confrontational words of hidden discrimination and alertness to “microaggressions”, but faced with the risks that face all if anti-racism is not taken seriously. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made current, critical, and adaptive. Maybe an entire name rebrand is necessary – Black History is Now Month.
