Each year, Feb. 1 marks the beginning of Black History Month, a month of celebration for some and a month of complaints for others. Those who object often claim we have erased racism or that dedicating an entire 29 days to black history only continues to divide us by race. Neither claim is true, in fact, both are so incredibly far from the truth. Growing up in a predominately white town, Black History Month was never really taken seriously. It was up to the teachers to recognize it, and most of them happily ignored it. For a while I wasn't bothered, especially after hearing complaints like “why do Black people get a whole month” and “why isn’t there ‘white history month,’” but as I’ve grown older, I have come to a grim realization that I know nearly nothing about my ancestors, and everything I can know is only applicable to the civil rights movement and slavery. Is that all there is to the black narrative? Absolutely not. But as a Black person who does not know any better because black history was never taught in my public school curriculum, how should I know any better than my white peers? White history month is every other month of the year — think about what you were taught in your history classes. To fill any black history void, you probably had to take an African-American history class and chances are you didn’t.
Rest assured, Black History Month is alive and thriving, still celebrated by few, but nevertheless an opportunity to shine light on the incredible history of African Americans in the United States. For those who wonder why the black narrative is so important to the American dialogue, here's the rundown.
Black excellence exists.
It’s not often that you see those two words together, and that fact alone tells a great deal about what we have been taught to think about black people and their history. Sure, you know of Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, but do you know of W.E.B. Du Bois or Elijah McCoy? You probably assumed that Black inventors, philosophers, painters, politicians, and authors exist, but can you name them off the top of your head like you can with Edison, Descartes, Van Gogh, Washington, and Fitzgerald? You may or may not take it upon yourself to discover other historical figures who helped shape the world we live in today, but it is essential to recognize the intentional absence of Black figures. For the longest time, I felt ashamed of the color of my skin. Ashamed because I thought my ancestors were nothing more than slaves who were liberated only to be subject to Jim Crow laws. Ashamed because of the few Black figures I knew about and could admire were assassinated, hated, or just a single page in my textbook. Black excellence exists, perhaps not in my past curriculums, nor in the media today, but it is essential to find it, not only for the sake of Black youth like my past self but to genuinely grasp what American history is.
Black History is American history.
There is no arguing this — no matter how often African-American is applied to people of darker skin — we are just as American as any white person who doesn’t need to be defined as a European-American. Both races ended up on American soil by boat, one forcibly, one uninvited. Regardless, American history must completely encompass the history of all Americans. While a course dedicated to “African-American History” is nice and all, I find it is more important to integrate black history into “general” history. Think of the White House for example. It took centuries for a single Black person to step foot into the white House, but it only took eight years for Black slaves to build it in 1792. The same way we can say “where would we be without George Washington?” we can ask “where would we be without Black slave labor?”. Schools don’t want students to think like that because it sheds a negative light on white history, but in 2016, it’s about time we recognize it, learn about it, and progress from it.
Just as easily as you can brush off the existence of Black History Month, you can also become informed. Thanks to sites like Huffington Post, Buzzfeed and Google, a quick lesson is only a click away as they honor Black History Month in unique ways. And hey, you had no problem learning how to whip and nae nae, what’s the harm in learning about the people all your favorite dance moves come from?
