Today is Leap Day, and February has 29 days as it does every four years. So Black History Month is extended by one day. This is a good time to emphasize that Black history is American history and needs to be a focus not only in February but throughout the year. In 1926, scholar and historian Carter G. Woodson originated Negro History Week as a way to lift up the history and contributions of Black Americans at a time when they were largely left out of the education curriculum of both Black and white people. Dr. Woodson chose the second week of February, because it included the birthdays of two American leaders who contributed to the struggle for racial justice – Abraham Lincoln (Feb. 12) and Frederick Douglass (Feb. 14). Over time, this annual commemoration of Black History extended to the entire month of February. Black History month was officially recognized at the national level by President Ford in 1976. The first video posted below provides an overview of the origins of Black History Month.
Although Dr. Woodson founded Negro History Week almost 100 years ago, the following words from his classic book The Mis-Education of the Negro still challenge us today:
When you control a man’s thinking you do not have to worry about his actions. You do not have to tell him not to stand here or go yonder. He will find his “proper place” and will stay in it.”
These words were originally written in the context of oppressive legal racial segregation. Although our social context is significantly different today, we are facing renewed efforts to limit the teaching of Black History in ways that prevent people from learning the depth of this history and how it impacts our society today. In my home state of Virginia and in many other places around our nation, the racial “dog whistles” of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and “inherently divisive concepts” are used to keep the teaching of Black history at a superficial level while at the same time intimidating public educators who want to teach that history in a way consistent with the spirit of Carter G. Woodson. The second video posted below features the thoughts of Professor Michael Hines from Stanford University. He focuses on not only the origins of Black History Month but also on the motivation of Carter G. Woodson. He makes the point that Negro History Week was a direct challenge to the inadequate curriculum of the time as well as a call to action for social and political equality. He makes a strong case for the ongoing need for Black History Month not as a way of relegating it to superficial retelling of past events but as “a celebration, a stinging indictment, and a call to action.” That is the kind of history we need in February and throughout the year.