The annual Black History observance is a reflection of the current political climate, so in what ways can we modernize it?

It's Black History Month in the Britain, and it seems it’s time for a rethink. As time has passed, 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, broadening to incorporate events where Black people are compensated to talk to white audiences about “unconscious bias” and “allyship”. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade generated a rise in the industry of demonstrating racial awareness. However, that period has concluded. The tide has peaked, resulting in a somewhat empty inheritance of what increasing understanding is for.

The History of Black History Celebration

Originally observed in the United States and Canada, Black History Month was conceived in 1962 as “Negro History Week” by African American historian Carter G. Woodson with a week of remembrance and recognition in the second week of February. Black History Month grew out of this initiative and was publicly established in 1970. Currently it is marked not only in the US and Canada in winter, but also in October in the Britain, Deutschland, the Republic of Ireland and the Netherlands.

The period has evolved since that time, giving reduced attention to the accounts of transatlantic enslavement and civil rights battles, and increasingly on prominent Black figures in government, the arts, and social movements, and broadly celebrating the contribution Black people have made to mold society. It is in schools where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with lectures and artistic activities. But the method the observance is observed is a reflection of the political moment. How it develops is a good lesson in how co-option leads to weakening: the reshaping of Black History Month has impeded the point of it, which is to address structural and organizational discrimination.

A Jarring Moment

Few things illustrate how crucial it is to rethink Black History Month more than the particular moment in which it takes place this year. In the Britain, a resurgent right in the guise of the Reform political group is top in opinion ratings. In the warmer months we witnessed the most significant ultra-conservative gathering in the UK's past. Kemi Badenoch, the person of color at the helm of the right-wing political group, is a firm opponent of Black Lives Matter, and we are in a position where a legislator feels emboldened to say that the absence of Caucasian individuals in parts of a city is a reason for concern. Meanwhile, far-right parties are surging in the European continent as a whole.

In the America, a massive attack against DEI and affirmative action has been brought, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the supreme judicial bodies of the country. A drive to erase African American heritage and narrative from the records is ongoing. One of the former president's first executive orders focused on the institution dedicated to Black heritage, and the Smithsonian Institution, accusing them of a coordinated and broad attempt to change the national past” by portraying America “as fundamentally prejudiced”.

Given these circumstances, the celebration represents how minimally it can be effective if it is confined to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or stripped of political content commemorations of contributions in the past, rather than addressing the conditions of the current era. It also shows how its limited duration means that it is disconnected from the broader ongoing work that is necessary. A university professor, a professor at an educational institution, articulated it most accurately when she expressed apprehension about the fleeting superficial actions of the observance. “The issue with adopting a symbolic stance”, she stated, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month turns into a transient display rather than a agent of progress.”

Reconsidering, Not Discarding

Figuring out how to adjust, modify and expand actions for racial equality and recognition in such moments of dejection and worry is a treacherous thing. There is a urge to just discontinue events including Black History Month completely, assuming they are simply not fit for purpose, or are remnants of an period that has failed to deliver.

Yet, in spite of all this, Black History Month, and in fact the entire extended network and heritage of activism for racial justice – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and yes, even those talks to businesses – form an framework that a considerable labor has been invested in. It is there not just to decay as the situation evolves (and in fact, regresses), but to be a dynamic entity.

So what would a new dynamic Black History Month seem? To begin with, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is spread out throughout the annual calendar (as certain organizations are already commencing), elements of its material (particularly around historic Black characters) integrated into school curriculums. It would also be a period that does not evade politics, and leaves space for citizens, particularly the younger generation, to express their concerns and stories. What use is mere awareness of the past when it ignores the contemporary truth of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the street? Establishments who celebrate it should not be pacified with the non-confrontational words of implicit prejudice and alertness to minor insults, but faced with the threats that affect everyone if opposition to discrimination is not taken seriously. In short, Black History Month should be made current, pressing, and adaptive. Perhaps an total re-identification is required – Black History is Now Month.