Every February, most people turn their attention to the holiday with all the candied hearts and the expectations of either flowers or chocolates, or both. But starting February 1st and continuing throughout the month, every February of every year, is another celebration. It is one that has come and gone for decades over the course of America’s history—yet, unfortunately, still somehow manages to slip through the cracks of our education system, our governmental policies, and many of our daily lives throughout the rest of the year.
This celebration is Black History Month.
Made official by Congress, as well as the House and Senate, in 1986, Black History Month actually has its own extensive history dating back to 1926—starting with a man named Dr. Carter G. Woodson. The son of former slaves, Woodson considered education to be the “great equalizer,” and vowed from a young age that he would go off to college and pursue a degree (ASAHL). He attended Douglass High School, an all-black school in Huntington, West Virginia, and received his diploma within only one year of a two-year program—despite being frequently absent for his apprenticeship in the coal mines. On top of earning his teaching certificate in West Virginia, Woodson also completed a Bachelor of Law degree at Berea College in Kentucky in 1903, and a doctorate from Harvard almost ten years later (ASAHL).
All throughout his adulthood, Woodson strove to educate others around him and to help fix the flaws he commonly saw in American education systems. In 1915, he traveled to Washington D.C. along with thousands of other African Americans in order to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of emancipation. Inspired by the exhibits promoting black progress since the end of slavery, Woodson later formed the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History—later to be renamed the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASAHL). He also established The Journal of Negro History in 1916, and began urging various civic organizations to promote all the black achievements that ASAHL was discovering. In response to these developments, Woodson and his fraternity brothers from Omega Psi Phi combined forces and launched “Negro History Week” in February, 1926 (ASAHL). February was an ideal month in which to establish this celebratory week, as it included the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass—two prominent figures of black history who were already being celebrated at the time. Woodson believed that stretching the celebrations to a week in February would simply “extend [the] study of black history” instead of having History Week compete for a spot as a new tradition (ASAHL).
Soon, Negro History Week was appearing in schools and public areas all across the country. Black literature and culture were on the rise during the 20s, and as early as the 40s and all throughout the Civil Rights Movement, the week of history was continuously promoted by black communities and white progressives (ASAHL). By 1976, the final shift from a week to a month, and from “negro history” to “black history” was institutionalized, and from the mid-1970s and onward, “every American president, Democrat and Republican, has issued proclamations endorsing the Association’s annual theme” (ASAHL).
And now that we know a little bit about the history behind it, we must ask ourselves the question: why does Black History Month matter in the here and now?
According to the ASAHL website, when President Ronald Reagan issued a proclamation in observance of Black History Month he remarked: “the foremost purpose of Black History Month is to make all Americans aware of this struggle for freedom and equal opportunity.” In other words, for many of us in America, celebrating Black History Month is our way of acknowledging the fight that many people of color have had to put up just to get their voices heard and to be recognized. As Americans, many of us are proud of our revolutionary history against oppression, and yet we have failed time and again to admit the hypocrisy as more than half our citizens were continuously denied their own freedoms for the next couple of hundred years afterward. Celebrating Black History Month is a way for us to acknowledge that struggle and work to further bridge the racial divide.
But this month is more than just a time for reflection: it is also a time for inspiration. Black History Month gives us a chance to acknowledge the many contributions that black people have made to America—and the world—over the centuries. Woodson was once known to remark to an audience of students at Hampton Institute: “We are going back to that beautiful history and it is going to inspire us to greater achievements” (ASAHL). For black people and progressives all across America, celebrating black history means celebrating accomplishment, art and beauty, and a hope for a brighter future. It is a chance to further educate ourselves about race and culture, and what we can do to ensure equality and freedom for all peoples of the world.
If we continue to ignore history, then we will never learn from it. We can see this vividly in America, in the continuous struggle for equality that many people of color have had to face to this day. Celebrating Black History Month is important for everyone because that history is very telling of what needs to change, and what needs to stay the same. Contributions such as music, visual arts, literature, and many other aspects of black culture are things that need to be preserved and admired and respected; things such as systemic racism, white fragility, and implicit bias are things that need to be acknowledge, understood, and changed. And by sharing in the celebration of Black History Month, we can all do our part to make that change for the better.
For more information on Black History Month, visit the ASAHL website: About Black History Month – ASALH – The Founders of Black History Month
— C.Q.
