I understood the point of Black History Month a lot more when I was in elementary school and there was very little mention of black history. But now in 2010 when I see Obama, Beyonce and a bunch of others making history 365 days of the year, taking one month to celebrate the achievements of the black race seems unnecessary.
There are basically three reasons why I think BHM is no longer relevant:
3. There is no definition of Black History
I'm sure everyone has seen NBC’s attempt at trying to salute black history month. Above is the picture that Questlove from The Roots tweeted of NBC’s cafeteria menu. If I was sensitive I would say that it was racist, but I really don’t think it was. Actually $7.50 for all that food seems like a good deal. My only issue was that those dishes aren’t part of my “black” history. It’s probably because I'm of West Indian descent that cornbread and collard greens don’t scream “black” to me.
NBC’s menu is a salute to American black history which is what most of us use as the basis of how to celebrate BHM. We acknowledge standard American icons; Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson and Oprah to name a few. We talk about 400 years of slavery, the Underground Railroad and civil rights movement but that is not every black person's history.
My roots are from the Caribbean, so while Americans were facing oppression and fighting for equal rights in the sixties my family was living in a country where blacks were the majority and Jim Crow law was not an issue. And what about our brothers and sisters who are from Africa? Their history is vastly different than our two experiences. Black history is too diverse to be generalized.
2. Times have changed
A few years ago a white friend of mine made a joke that as a white male in today’s North American society he was oppressed. He felt he had to watch his step because everything he did or said could be misconstrued as being racist. He asked us (his black wife and I) why there is BET (Black Entertainment Television) and no White Entertainment Television. We told him in unison that every channel is WET.
When BET came out in 1980, it was necessary for us to have our own platform to be heard. But now “black” culture is so mainstream that we don’t need a BET because MTV and VH1 are playing the same things. Black radio stations are playing Justin Timberlake and mainstream radio is playing urban music non-stop. Times are different and black history is (or at least should be) recognized as history period.
1. It’s only a month long
Celebrating the achievements and contributions of those of African descent should be done throughout the year and not just in one month. Our history is everyone’s history and for a race that strived for equality for so long, separating our history is a contradiction.
Like I said before, years ago Black History Month was very necessary. It gave us the opportunity to celebrate our history in this country, from slavery to modern day. But now we shouldn’t only use 28 days (sometimes 29) to remember the history of our diverse and unique race.
Our roots and what our ancestors endured and fought for so that we could live the lives we live today should be remembered always. Not to mention, blacks are not the only minority race in North America. We may have had it harder than most but that doesn’t mean that Asian history or even Native history shouldn’t be celebrated.
I think the benefit of having BHM is that we're exposed to more aspects of the black experience. Book stores will often put out a table of books on black history or culture, which they probably wouldn't throughout the rest of the year.
I also just caught a great fllm about the end of apartheid called "Endgame" on TVO, which was part of their black history month programming.
Basically, it forces us to look at and be exposed to things about black people, from the continent of Africa to the diaspora, we may not have been familiar with before, and that can only be a good thing.
Very well stated; and summarized i might add... The thoughts and insights are mutual. I agree that Black History Month should extend beyond Martin Luther King and Civil rights, generally speaking.
When it comes down to it, I am just simply glad that BHM acknowledges the realization of how far black people have come as a people and as a culture. More importantly, to me, it also gives that underlying affect in today's society that allows everybody to be optimistic about the path that race relations are on.
I agree with a few of your point however I believe that celebrating Black History month is still very necessary. As Blacks we should celebrate each other and ourselves everyday of our lives but this is a month to share our history, achievements etc.. with other people. Racism is still an issue today, it is more settle in form but it's still an issue, that many still face daily. It is important to teach children about Black history...all children not just black children to forge an understanding and help eliminate racism. We need to teach the different Black experiences, growing up in Canada with a Jamaican background is not the same as growing up in the US as an African American. We should even discuss the issues behind people of bi-racial decent like President Barack Obama. All Blacks are not 'the same' and we should acknowledge and teach that and use BHM as a platform to start open discussions. BET just upsets me these days, your right about VH1, MTV showing the same showing, music video's etc.. BET in my opinion just plays in to the 'ghetto black' sterotype. Most blacks are not poor, we are actually middle class and a lot of us have post secondary education. BET needs to go back to it's roots with having shows that celebrate our communities and accomplishments of diverse blacks including Caribbean, Canadian and African cultures as well taking about issues that affect our communities such as education, spirituallity, investments, family and health related issues. Let VH1 and MTV show girls 'shake what their mama gave them'. Doing away with the whole thing is not a good idea, it needs to be improved and more relavent.
HaHa. I remember there was a chain email going around that mentions the whole W.E.T. thing. And I said the same exact thing. B.E.T. isn't even really run by black people anymore....maybe that is why Huey Freeman had such a problem.......Overall and well written article.
I agree, times have changed and BHM has definitely been looked at widely from the American point of view. Although, I still find it necessary to have the one month to celebrate, even though more would be better. I mean, its better than nothing right? Also, since Black History is such a broad topic and is looked at from many different perspectives, it would be highly unlikely to have a solid definition. I also, agree that there are many other cultures out there that deserve "national time" to celebrate the hardships of their history as well.