This commemorative month is a reflection of the prevailing political atmosphere, so how do we revamp it?
It's Black History Month in the UK, and it seems it’s time for a reassessment. Throughout its history, an event that began as a festivity and recollection of heritage, traditions and links between global Black communities, has developed a business-like atmosphere, expanding to include gatherings where individuals of African heritage are remunerated to speak with white audiences about implicit prejudice and active solidarity. The 2020s Black Lives Matter protests created a surge in the enterprise of showcasing anti-racist commitment. However, that period has concluded. The tide has reached its height, leaving a sort of hollowed out legacy of what raising awareness is for.
The History of Black History Celebration
Initially celebrated in the America and its northern neighbor, Black History Month was established in 1962 as an observance of African American heritage by historian of African descent Carter G. Woodson with multiple days of remembrance and recognition in the middle of February. Black History Month evolved from this initiative and was formally inaugurated in 1970. Now it is celebrated not only in the North America in February, but also in the tenth month in the United Kingdom, Deutschland, the Republic of Ireland and the Netherlands.
The month has transformed since those days, focusing less on the histories of colonial slavery and civil rights battles, and more 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 educational institutions where Black History Month is most commonly celebrated, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the method the celebration is observed is a manifestation of the current political situation. How it develops is a instructive case in how co-option leads to weakening: the reshaping of Black History Month has hindered the point of it, which is to tackle structural and organizational discrimination.
A Troubling Time
Few things illustrate how important it is to reevaluate Black History Month as much as the particular moment in which it occurs this year. In the Britain, a reemerging right-wing in the guise of the Reform organization is ahead in surveys. In the summer we observed the largest far-right rally in the history of Britain. Kemi Badenoch, the person of color at the helm of the Conservative party, is a firm opponent of the racial justice movement, and we are in a situation where a legislator feels empowered to state that “not seeing any white faces” in specific city neighborhoods is a cause for alarm. At the same time, ultra-nationalist movements are surging in Europe as a whole.
In the US, a significant offensive against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been brought, often successfully, to the supreme judicial bodies of the nation. A drive to scrub African American heritage and narrative from the records is under way. One of Donald Trump's first executive orders aimed at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the renowned cultural organization, accusing them 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 symbolises how little it can be effective if it is confined to either dutiful corporate observances, or politically neutered commemorations of contributions in the past, rather than confronting the conditions of the current era. It also shows how its restricted time span means that it is separated from the broader ongoing work that is needed. Denise Miller, a educator at an educational institution, expressed it perfectly when she voiced worries about the short-term symbolic gestures of the celebration. “The difficulty with embracing a superficial method”, she stated, “is that it often means that Black History Month becomes a brief show rather than a catalyst for change.”
Rethinking, But Not Jettisoning
Establishing how to adapt, revise and extend actions for racial equality and recognition in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a difficult task. There is a temptation to just discontinue things like Black History Month altogether, thinking they are simply not fit for purpose, or are vestiges of an period that has not worked.
Yet, in spite of all this, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and tradition of racial movements – local anti-racism groups, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and certainly, even commercial engagements – represent an framework that a considerable labor has been dedicated to. It is there not just to decay as the politics moves on (and in fact, declines), but to be a living breathing thing.
So what would a contemporary active Black History Month appear as? Well, first, it would be extended beyond a brief observance: something that is spread out through the year (as various establishments are already commencing), sections of its curriculum (particularly around prominent figures of color) included in academic syllabi. It would also be a era that does not shy away from governmental matters, and allows opportunity for citizens, particularly the younger generation, to express their concerns and stories. What value has simple recognition of the bygone era when it fails to address the present reality of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the urban areas? Establishments who celebrate it should not be reassured with the neutral terminology of implicit prejudice and sensitivity to “microaggressions”, but challenged by the threats that impact society if anti-racism is not approached earnestly. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made contemporary, critical, and responsive. Maybe an total re-identification is in order – Black History is Now Month.
