Black History is American History: Statement from John Edmonds
Below is a statement from John Edmonds, Project Legacy Co-Founder and Board Member, on the historical context of Black History Month and an urge for the future.
I want to give a little background on Black History Month. I think it’s important to understand the historical context in which this celebration came to be.
“Carter G. Woodson (Noted historian and educator) believed that young African Americans in the early 20th century were not being taught enough of their own heritage, and the achievements of their ancestors.
In 1915, he helped found the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH). In February 1926, Woodson sent out a press release announcing the first Negro History Week. He chose February because the month contained the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, two prominent men whose historic achievements African Americans already celebrated. (Lincoln’s birthday was February 12; Douglass, a former slave, hadn’t known his actual birthday, but had marked the occasion on February 14.)
With the rise of the civil rights and Black Power movements in the 1960s, young African Americans on college campuses were becoming increasingly conscious of the historic dimension of their experience.
In 1976, on the 50th anniversary of the first Negro History Week, the Association officially made the shift to Black History Month. Gerald Ford began the tradition in 1976, saying the celebration enabled people to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”
While I wholeheartedly support the idea of celebrating the contributions of African Americans to the American experience, I've had an issue with African American history being condensed into one month, regardless of length of the month. I mean, what's up with that? I can remember when the idea of assigning a month to focus on African Americans was a novel and welcome notion. But I was still ill at ease and maybe not able to put into words exactly, the idea that the sum total of Black people's experience in America could be captured in one month.
The obvious reality is that it can't.
Add to that, the celebratory nature of the programs, and I found myself in this odd fantasy world trying to reconcile this with what I knew my reality and the reality of my ancestors to be.
The problem is firstly, that Black history is not a “thing”, separate and discrete from the American experience. Black history is American history as is Native American history, and the stories of every immigrant group who has come to this country. So, to relegate Black history to one month marginalizes and trivializes the experience of black people in this country.
While celebrating the accomplishments of various black people is admirable, ignoring the horrors of slavery is self-serving. I read an article recently about a school district who prohibited a student from doing a black history presentation on Malcolm X because he was too controversial. This gets to my second issue with Black History Month. It seems to me that this is a device to assuage some guilt and placate those who have suffered injustices. It's a token gesture rather than a full throated acceptance of the importance of Black people in the development of this country and in the tremendous injustices that they've suffered and the tremendous contributions that they've made.
With what we’ve witnessed in this past year alone, the challenges to equity, diversity, equality and justice are clear and present dangers.
George Floyd, Breonna Taylor didn’t die in February. The incredible turnout of African Americans in the November elections was a significant marker in the timeline of the political influence of African Americans.
In 2021, I think it’s time to fully embrace the truth.
