The annual Black History observance serves as a mirror of the current political climate, so how do we revamp it?
We are in Black History Month in the United Kingdom, and it appears it’s time for a reassessment. Throughout its history, an celebration that was initiated as a festivity and recollection of history, culture and the connections between international African diaspora communities, has taken on a business-like atmosphere, expanding to include functions where African descendants are remunerated to speak with Caucasian groups about hidden biases and “allyship”. The demonstrations for racial justice in the 2020s sparked an increase in the enterprise of showcasing anti-racist commitment. Yet, that phase is now over. The tide has reached its height, producing a diluted aftermath of what promoting consciousness is for.
The History of Black History Observance
First commemorated in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was established in 1962 as a week dedicated to Negro history by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with multiple days of commemoration and observance in the second week of February. Black History Month evolved from this movement and was formally inaugurated in 1970. Now it is celebrated not only in the US and Canada in winter, but also in the tenth month in the Britain, Germany, Ireland and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The period has evolved since its inception, placing less emphasis on the accounts of colonial slavery and fights for racial justice, and increasingly on notable African descendants in government, the arts, and social movements, and widely honoring the contribution Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in schools where Black History Month is most regularly observed, with talks and cultural events. But the method the observance is commemorated is a reflection of the contemporary political context. How it progresses is a valuable example in how appropriation leads to dismantling: the transformation of Black History Month has hindered the objective of it, which is to confront systemic and institutional racism.
A Disconcerting Period
Few things illustrate how important it is to rethink Black History Month better than the current time 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 warmer months we observed the most significant ultra-conservative gathering in the UK's past. a prominent political figure, the African descendant in charge of the Tory party, is a staunch adversary of the racial justice movement, and we are in a situation where a elected representative gains confidence to state that a lack of white people in certain urban areas is a cause for alarm. At the same time, far-right parties are surging in the European continent as a whole.
In the United States, a colossal assault against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been taken, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the top legal institutions of the state. A effort to erase African American heritage and legacy from the archives is in progress. One of the political figure's first executive orders targeted the institution dedicated to Black heritage, and the renowned cultural organization, alleging that they of a “concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our Nation’s history” by representing the nation “as naturally discriminatory”.
Given these circumstances, the month symbolises how minimally it can be effective if it is restricted to either dutiful corporate observances, or depoliticized festivities of contributions in the past, rather than addressing the realities of the current era. It also reveals how its restricted time span means that it is detached from the more extensive continuous action that is required. Denise Miller, a professor at an educational institution, put it best when she voiced worries about the fleeting superficial actions of the month. “The problem with taking a tokenistic approach”, she stated, “is that it often means that Black History Month evolves into a transient display rather than a driver of transformation.”
Reconsidering, Not Discarding
Determining how to adapt, revise and extend efforts for equal rights and acknowledgment in such moments of dejection and worry is a difficult task. There is a urge to just discontinue things like Black History Month entirely, believing they are simply not fit for purpose, or are vestiges of an period that has failed to deliver.
But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the entire extended network and legacy of campaigns for equality – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and certainly, even commercial engagements – represent an foundation that a significant effort has been invested in. It is there not only to deteriorate as the situation evolves (and in fact, declines), but to be a living breathing thing.
So what would a contemporary active Black History Month look like? To begin with, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is dispersed across all seasons (as certain organizations are already starting to implement), elements of its material (particularly around notable African descendants) included in school curriculums. It would also be a time that does not avoid governmental matters, and allows opportunity for citizens, particularly the younger generation, to share their anxieties and narratives. What value has simple recognition of the past when it ignores the current situation of far-right rallies in the public spaces? Institutions who celebrate it should not be reassured with the passive language of hidden discrimination and sensitivity to subtle slights, but challenged by the threats that face all if anti-racism is not taken seriously. To summarize, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, critical, and adaptive. It could be that an total re-identification is necessary – Contemporary Black History Month.
