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We are in Black History Month in the United Kingdom, and it seems it’s time for a rethink. Over the years, an event that began as a celebration and reminder of the past, cultural identity and bonds between international African diaspora communities, has developed a business-like atmosphere, growing to encompass functions where African descendants are remunerated to speak with predominantly white listeners about implicit prejudice and active solidarity. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade created a surge in the enterprise of demonstrating racial awareness. But even that moment has passed. The surge has crested, leaving a sort of hollowed out legacy of what increasing understanding is for.

The History of Black History Celebration

First commemorated in the US and Canada, Black History Month was conceived in 1962 as an observance of African American heritage by African American historian Carter G. Woodson with a week of remembrance and recognition in the second week of February. Black History Month grew out of this initiative and was publicly established in 1970. Today it is observed not only in the United States and Canada in the second month, but also in the tenth month in the United Kingdom, Deutschland, Éire and the the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

The observance has transformed since its inception, focusing less on the narratives of the slave trade across the Atlantic and fights for racial justice, and increasingly on influential individuals of color in politics, culture, and activism, and widely honoring the input Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in schools where Black History Month is most regularly observed, with lectures and artistic activities. But the way the month is celebrated is a reflection of the political moment. How it evolves is a valuable example in how co-option leads to weakening: the restructuring of Black History Month has impeded the purpose of it, which is to address embedded and established prejudice.

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A Jarring Moment

Few things illustrate how crucial it is to rethink Black History Month better than the current time in which it occurs this year. In the Britain, a resurgent right in the form of the Reform organization is ahead in surveys. In the recent season we witnessed the most significant ultra-conservative gathering in British history. the Conservative leader, the person of color at the helm of the Tory party, is a staunch adversary of the racial justice movement, and we are in a situation where a legislator feels emboldened to say that a lack of white people in certain urban areas is a reason for concern. At the same time, ultra-nationalist movements are growing in the EU as a whole.

In the America, a massive attack against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been brought, repeatedly with positive outcomes, to the supreme judicial bodies of the state. A effort to remove African American heritage and narrative from the archives is in progress. One of the former president's early administrative commands targeted the institution dedicated to Black heritage, and the prestigious establishment, accusing them of a “concerted and widespread effort to alter the country's historical narrative” by portraying America “as fundamentally prejudiced”.

Against this backdrop, the month illustrates how insufficiently it can be impactful if it is restricted to either dutiful corporate observances, or stripped of political content festivities of former accomplishments, rather than challenging the conditions of the contemporary world. It also reveals how its short period means that it is disconnected from the wider consistent effort that is needed. Denise Miller, a prof at University of Greenwich, articulated it most accurately when she raised concerns about the temporary “tokenism” of the celebration. “The issue with adopting a symbolic stance”, she commented, “is that it frequently results in that Black History Month becomes a brief show rather than a agent of progress.”

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Reevaluating, Not Abandoning

Determining how to adjust, modify and expand efforts for racial equality and recognition in such periods of dismay and anxiety is a difficult task. There is a inclination to just eliminate things like Black History Month completely, believing they are simply not fit for purpose, or are vestiges of an time that has not worked.

But despite everything, Black History Month, and in fact the whole broad system and legacy of campaigns for equality – community-based BLM initiatives, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and indeed, including corporate presentations – form an foundation that a considerable labor has been dedicated to. It is there not only to deteriorate as the politics moves on (and in fact, regresses), but to be a living breathing thing.

So what would a new dynamic Black History Month look like? Well, first, it would be not just one concentrated month: something that is dispersed through the year (as some institutions are already commencing), sections of its curriculum (particularly around historic Black characters) incorporated into academic syllabi. It would also be a time that does not avoid political issues, and provides room for individuals, particularly young people, to share their anxieties and narratives. What value has simple recognition of the past when it ignores the current situation of extreme conservative demonstrations in the street? Institutions who celebrate it should not be reassured with the non-confrontational words of hidden discrimination and alertness to “microaggressions”, but challenged by the threats that impact society if opposition to discrimination is not taken seriously. Briefly stated, Black History Month should be made up-to-date, critical, and reactive. Maybe an complete renaming is in order – Contemporary Black History Month.