Black History Month

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Black History Month is a remembrance of important people and events in the history of the African diaspora. It is celebrated annually in the United States and Canada in the month of February.

The remembrance originated in 1926 by historian Carter G. Woodson as "Negro History Week"^[1]. Woodson chose the second week of February because it marked the birthdays of two Americans who greatly influenced the lives and social condition of African Americans: former President Abraham Lincoln and abolitionist and former slave Frederick Douglass. Woodson also founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, now the Association for the Study of African American Life and History.

Contents 1 Purpose 2 Controversy 3 See also 4 External links 5 References

[edit] Purpose

When the tradition of Black History Month was started in the US, many in mainstream academia had barely begun to explore black history. At that point, most representation of blacks in history books was only in reference to the low social position they held as slaves and their descendants, with infrequent exceptions such as that of George Washington Carver. Black History Month is also referred to as African-American History Month. W.E.B. DuBois' 1935 work "Black Reconstruction" was an early work in history that pointed to black contributions.^[2]

In the United Kingdom (UK), Black History Month is celebrated in October. Various guides are printed detailing listings of Black History Month events held throughout the UK. The largest of these guides, ROOTS, will this year be distributed prior to and at the Black History Festival. Taking place between October 9-11 2009 on Potters Field Park, alongside the GLA and Tower Bridge, the The Black History Festival will be the highlight of Black History Month celebrations in the Capital, and the biggest event of its kind ever held in the UK. Roots also contains in-depth interviews and editorial features on topical diversity and equality issues. The Official Guide to Black History Month, published by Sugar Media, Ltd., produced 100,000 copies nationwide in 2008. Indications are that it will not be published in 2009 through lack of funding. ^[3]

[edit] Controversy

Black History Month sparks an annual debate about the continued usefulness and fairness of a designated month dedicated to the history of one race. Critical op-ed pieces have appeared in the Cincinnati Enquirer ^[4] and USA Today. ^[5]

Some African JESTINE radical/nationalist groups, including the Nation of Islam, have criticized Black History Month. Some critics, including Morgan Freeman, contend that Black History Month is irrelevant because it has degenerated into a shallow ritual,^[6] and say that it serves to undermine the contention that black history is American history.^[7]

[edit] See also

• African diaspora
• African-Americans
• American Civil Rights Movement (1896-1954)
• American Civil Rights Movement (1955-1968)
• Timeline of the American Civil Rights Movement
• Racial segregation in the United States
• Great Migration (African American)
• History of slavery in the United States
• African American newspapers
• Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
• National Hispanic Heritage Month
• Jewish American Heritage Month
• List of commemorative days

[edit] External links

• Black History on BBC 1Xtra - Timeline, videos, documentaries and info on UK music.
• Black History - Timeline and many videos to watch at the Biography Channel website
• Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History
• The Washington, DC Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Project Foundation
• Celebrating Black History on the Web from UCB Libraries GovPubs

[edit] References