Revolution of Black History Month
Call to Action for Most Important Month of the Year for Black People
The revolution of Black History month is a call to action to link key past events to present issues in the Black community as a means to encourage the continued struggle.
It is February again. This months bring with it valentines, snowstorms and Black History Month. The controversy around this commemorative month continues, though on the surface it has become an accepted presence. Still with every year that it arrives, we have people asking “ Why Just Black History?” “What about every other culture in North America?” “Why is Black History during the shortest month of the year?” The comments, questions and jokes are tired and repetitive. Similarly, many of the activities and practices during Black History Month are also repetitive. Black History Month is of vital importance. But as history grows longer and more events take place, Black History Month needs a revolution onto itself.
There are some very key subjects that will always need to be highlighted whenever the matter of Black History is discussed. The facts of the slave trade, US and Canadian slavery of Blacks, the Underground Railroad, the Civil War, emancipation, Jim Crow, the Klu Klux Klan, Emmett Till, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, The Black Panthers, The Civil Rights Act, the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiments, the Los Angeles riots, affirmative action, and many other events are the core of Black History month. In schools the focus for students is often on Martin Luther King and his Dream. This Dream is important, but allows for an easier digestion of the horrors of racism and discrimination that exist in different forms today. The idea that these subjects are history is also misleading.
George Santayana said those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. Those who celebrate and purport to recognize the importance of Black History month have a responsibility to make the links between the traditional historical events and current events demonstrate the repetition of unlearned lessons.
The Klu Klux Klan still exists. They much quieter, but they are still there. This needs to discussed. Every day the civil rights and liberties of Blacks and other non-dominant cultures are trampled or exploited. Open any major newspaper on any given day and an example will be found. This needs to be discussed. There is a whole class of menial labourers and human traffic that are being treated as slaves in our cities and communities today. This needs to be discussed. The Black stereotypes popular in the times of Gone with the Wind and the Minstrel shows still exist today in music videos, television and movies. This needs to be discussed.
History is challenging for youth today to relate to, as they did not live it. Questions to inspire youth to think of historical links to the current system need to be asked. Modern laws and political correctness have given Blacks the notion of equality. What has replaced slavery and Jim Crow that works to keep Blacks as second-class citizens? Do Blacks have the same economic equality simply because a slew of Rap artists and sports figures can boast large bank accounts? When gun violence takes place in a community and the victims and/or perpetrators are Black, why is the search for the solution to this violence directed only to the Black community? Who and where are the current Black leaders?
At present Black History month is serving its purpose to acknowledge the achievements of great Black leaders of the past. It serves to bring forth pride in young Black people when they learn of the inventions, firsts and amazing accomplishments of Black men and women. Yet, Black History Month also needs to inspire continued battling against the contemporary systemic racism, ongoing marginalization and oppression of Blacks. To do so, the links between the past and present must be made. At the end of this short, cold month, Black children and youth need to be left with a commingling sense of pride and the burning awareness of the continued struggle.
