By Nicilan Sydnor
Martin Luther King Jr., Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Barack Obama: we have all heard of them. From our parents, friends, school, Black History Month has, without a doubt, been the talk of the century.
Black History Month often sparks an annual debate about the continued usefulness and fairness of a designated month dedicated to the history of one race. Controversial questions have been raised about this celebration, but little is more important than understanding the past so we can understand where we are, and who we are, in the present:
“A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin, and culture is a tree without roots.”
- Marcus Garvey
For people that have had the experience of growing up without the knowledge of knowing their parents or grandparents, having some sort of blanks in the family tree that helps fill you in on who you are, they know how it feels to question and be concerned about the unknown things. For every race, not just African Americans, knowing where you come from is an important foundation of life. But for African Americans, Black history Month has been the annual remembrance of their history. Though this month is designated for one specific race, a history lesson for other races about African Americans is not such a bad idea, suggests The Black United Students.
The story of black history Month begins in 1915, half a century after the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in the United States. The 13th Amendment states:
“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”
Years later after the abolishing of slavery, Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), sponsored a national Negro History Week in 1926, choosing the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. Black communities had celebrated these dates together since the late 19th century. At the start, it was placed on encouraging the coordinated teaching of the history of American blacks in the nation's public schools. The first Negro History Week was met with a lukewarm response, gaining the cooperation of the Departments of Education of the states of North Carolina, Delaware, and West Virginia, and a couple other states. Despite the majority of people defying of the decision, the event was regarded by Woodson as "one of the most fortunate steps ever taken by the Association," and plans for a repeat of the event on an annual basis continued.
Black History Month was first proposed by black educators and the Black United Students at Kent State University in February 1969. The first celebration of Black History Month took place at Kent State one year later. Six years later, Black History Month was being celebrated all across the country when President Gerald Ford recognized Black History Month during the celebration of the United States Bicentennial in educational institutions, centers of Black culture, and community centers. When President Gerald Ford recognized Black History Month, during the celebration of United States Bicentennial, Gerald Ford urged Americans to "seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history,” and so they did.
Even now, criticism of the idea still comes up. Black History Month often sparks an annual debate about the continued usefulness and fairness of a designated month dedicated to the history of one race. The original inspiration for Black History Month was a desire to recognize the manner in which American schools failed to represent black historical figures as anything other than slaves or colonial subjects. Some say Black History Month reduces complex historical figures to overly simplified objects of hero worship. Other critics refer to the celebration as racist. Some also say that Black History Month is simply an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of blacks in U.S. history.
Since 1976, every American president has designated February as Black History Month and endorsed a specific theme. When Carter G. Woodson established Negro History week in 1926, he realized the importance of providing a theme to focus the attention of the public. The intention has never been to dictate or limit the exploration of the Black experience but to help recognize the roles African Americans did in important historical events. Last year, The Black History Month 2018 theme was, “African Americans in Times of War,” which marks the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I and honors the roles that black Americans have played in warfare.
Through all the controversy, it is necessary and important to know is that it is not for African Americans, but for Americans. It is not just the history of Blacks, but rather the history of America.