Black History Month: An anachronism?

It’s time for Black History Month to be relegated to, well, history, said Cynthia Tucker in The Atlanta-Journal Constitution. When first advocated back in 1926 (as “Negro History Week”) by black historian Carter Woodson, lynchings were commonplace and blacks were systematically barred from positions of authority. To battle such hatred and discrimination, Woodson argued that a period should be set aside for Americans of all races to learn about blacks’ contributions to the nation. But 80 years later, Black History Month, which is celebrated in February, seems “quaint, jarring, and anachronistic.” The very notion that “black history” can somehow be segregated from “American history” was always questionable, but now it’s downright absurd. “Suffice it to say that the nation of Tiger Woods, Oprah Winfrey, and Barack Obama no longer needs a Black History Month.”

If only that were true, said Darryl Owens in the Orlando Sentinel. Americans remain woefully ignorant of this nation’s racial history, and Obama’s triumph does not suddenly erase that reality. In fact, “the purposeful acknowledgment of black contributions to America’s greatness is more critical than ever.” It’s important for Americans to understand that “black achievers now on the political landscape didn’t spring from a vacuum.” Most of us may now be familiar with the achievements of Booker T. Washington, Thurgood Marshall, and Martin Luther King Jr., but there are legions more who blazed the trail that Obama followed—and their names and heroism remain unsung. Rather than throwing in the towel, we should redouble our commitment to “taking a thoughtful look at the peculiar historical tapestry of black Americans, warts and all.”

But that’s something we should be doing all year long, said Lalita Amos in The Indianapolis Star. By trying “to cram every bit of black accomplishment into 28 days,” we’re left with “a big, hot mess of SoujournerTubmaDouglassLincoKing.” And I’m tired of my white friends asking me what I’m doing for Black History Month, “as if black history isn’t their history.” The real problem with Black History Month, said Eric Arnesen in the Chicago Tribune, is that it really isn’t about history. Schools, politicians, and the media have turned these weeks into a ritualized celebration of black “heritage, pride, and accomplishment.” That pride has its place, of course, but not at the expense of learning about the “rich and complicated narrative” of black Americans’ long and painful struggle for equality.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up