🔗 Share this article

This is Black History Month in the Britain, and it feels like it’s time for a rethink. Over the years, an observance that started out as a commemorative event of history, culture and the connections between international African diaspora communities, has taken on a business-like atmosphere, growing to encompass functions where African descendants are paid to talk to white audiences about hidden biases and supportive partnership. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade sparked an increase in the industry of demonstrating racial awareness. Yet, that phase is now over. The surge has reached its height, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what promoting consciousness is for.

The History of Black History Observance

First commemorated 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 seven days of celebration and reflection in the February's second week. Black History Month developed from this campaign and was officially launched in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the North America in winter, but also in October in the UK, Germany, Ireland and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

The observance has evolved since that time, focusing less on the narratives of transatlantic enslavement and fights for racial justice, and more on influential individuals of color in government, the arts, and social movements, and broadly celebrating the impact Black people have made to shape the country. It is in schools where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with talks and cultural events. But the method the observance is celebrated is a indication of the political moment. How it develops is a valuable example in how assimilation leads to erosion: the transformation of Black History Month has hindered the purpose of it, which is to confront embedded and established prejudice.

---

A Disconcerting Period

Few things illustrate how crucial it is to rethink Black History Month as much as the specific period in which it occurs this year. In the Britain, a resurgent right in the guise of the Reform organization is ahead in surveys. In the recent season we saw the largest far-right rally in the UK's past. a prominent political figure, the Black leader of the Tory party, is a firm opponent of anti-racism activism, and we are in a position where a legislator feels emboldened to say that a lack of white people in certain urban areas is a cause for alarm. Meanwhile, extreme conservative groups are surging in the EU as a complete entity.

In the US, a significant offensive against DEI and affirmative action has been taken, often successfully, to the highest courts of the state. A effort to remove African American heritage and narrative from the historical documents is under way. One of the political figure's first executive orders focused on the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the prestigious establishment, accusing them of a coordinated and broad attempt to alter the country's historical narrative” by portraying America “as inherently racist”.

In this context, the month symbolises how insufficiently it can be impactful if it is confined to either dutiful corporate observances, or politically neutered commemorations of former accomplishments, rather than confronting the situation of the present. It also shows how its short period means that it is disconnected from the wider consistent effort that is needed. An academic expert, a professor at a learning establishment, articulated it most accurately when she expressed apprehension about the short-term symbolic gestures of the month. “The issue with embracing a superficial method”, she stated, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month turns into a fleeting performance rather than a agent of progress.”

---

Reconsidering, Not Discarding

Figuring out how to adjust, modify and expand efforts for fair treatment and appreciation in such moments of dejection and worry is a treacherous thing. There is a urge to just eliminate events including Black History Month entirely, believing they are inadequate for current needs, or are remnants of an time that has not worked.

However, regardless of the situation, Black History Month, and in fact the complete comprehensive structure and heritage of racial movements – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, inclusion and equity efforts, and certainly, even commercial engagements – represent an foundation that a lot of work has gone into. It is there not just to decay as the politics moves on (and in fact, deteriorates), but to be a living breathing thing.

So what would a contemporary active Black History Month look like? To begin with, it would be not just one concentrated month: something that is distributed across all seasons (as certain organizations are already starting to implement), sections of its curriculum (particularly around historic Black characters) integrated into school curriculums. It would also be a era that does not avoid politics, and allows opportunity for people, particularly the younger generation, to air their fears and experiences. What value has basic knowledge of the past when it doesn’t reckon with the present reality of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the public spaces? Establishments who mark it should not be comforted with the non-confrontational words of “unconscious bias” and awareness of subtle slights, but challenged by the threats that impact society if fight against prejudice is not taken seriously. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, urgent, and reactive. Perhaps an entire name rebrand is necessary – Present-Day African Heritage Celebration.