This commemorative month is a reflection of the political moment, so what steps can we take to refresh it?
It's Black History Month in the UK, and it seems it’s time for a rethink. Over the years, an observance that was initiated as a celebration and reminder of the past, cultural identity and bonds between international African diaspora communities, has developed a commercial tone, broadening to incorporate functions where individuals of African heritage are paid to speak with Caucasian groups about hidden biases and supportive partnership. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests generated a rise in the industry of demonstrating racial awareness. However, that period has concluded. The tide has crested, producing a diluted aftermath of what increasing understanding is for.
The Background of Black History Month
Originally observed 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 a week of celebration and reflection in the middle of February. Black History Month evolved from this initiative and was officially launched in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the North America in the second month, but also in autumn in the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, the Republic of Ireland and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The month has transformed since its inception, placing less emphasis on the narratives of transatlantic enslavement and fights for racial justice, and increasingly on prominent Black figures in government, the arts, and social movements, and extensively acknowledging the impact Black people have made to mold society. It is in educational institutions where Black History Month is most regularly observed, with talks and cultural events. But the way the celebration is celebrated is a indication of the political moment. How it progresses is a instructive case in how assimilation leads to weakening: the transformation of Black History Month has impeded the point of it, which is to address systemic and institutional racism.
A Jarring Moment
Hardly anything shows how critical it is to rethink Black History Month as much as the specific period in which it occurs this year. In the Britain, a revitalized conservative movement in the form of the Reform political group is ahead in surveys. In the recent season we witnessed the biggest extreme right demonstration in the history of Britain. a prominent political figure, the person of color at the helm of the Tory party, is a staunch adversary of anti-racism activism, and we are in a situation where a legislator feels empowered to say that a lack of white people in certain urban areas is a cause for alarm. At the same time, ultra-nationalist movements are surging in the European continent as a complete entity.
In the United States, a significant offensive against DEI and affirmative action has been carried, often successfully, to the top legal institutions of the nation. A campaign to erase African American heritage and legacy from the archives is ongoing. One of Donald Trump's first executive orders targeted the museum of African American legacy, and the prestigious establishment, claiming they of a “concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our Nation’s history” by depicting the United States “as naturally discriminatory”.
In this context, the observance illustrates how insufficiently it can be impactful if it is limited to either dutiful corporate observances, or stripped of political content celebrations of contributions in the past, rather than confronting the conditions of the present. It also demonstrates how its restricted time span means that it is detached from the wider consistent effort that is necessary. An academic expert, a prof at an educational institution, put it best when she raised concerns about the fleeting superficial actions of the month. “The difficulty with taking a tokenistic approach”, she stated, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month becomes a brief show rather than a driver of transformation.”
Reconsidering, Not Discarding
Establishing how to adjust, modify and expand initiatives for racial equality and recognition in such moments of dejection and worry is a difficult task. There is a temptation to just do away with events including Black History Month entirely, assuming they are no longer suitable, or are remnants of an time that has failed to deliver.
However, regardless of the situation, Black History Month, and in fact the entire extended network and tradition of activism for racial justice – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and indeed, including corporate presentations – form an framework that a lot of work has gone into. It is there not just to decay 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? Well, first, it would be not just one concentrated month: something that is distributed across all seasons (as certain organizations are already starting to implement), elements of its material (particularly around historic Black characters) incorporated into school curriculums. It would also be a time that does not evade politics, and allows opportunity for people, particularly the younger generation, to express their concerns and stories. What use is simple recognition of the past when it doesn’t reckon with the contemporary truth of extreme conservative demonstrations in the urban areas? Organizations who celebrate it should not be comforted with the passive language of implicit prejudice and sensitivity to subtle slights, but confronted with the dangers that affect everyone if fight against prejudice is not treated with importance. In short, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, urgent, and reactive. Perhaps an complete renaming is necessary – Contemporary Black History Month.
