Elise Mitchell, Sophomore
Growing up, during Black History Month, students would learn about famous African American scholars, engineers, and heroes. We were taught of the feats and achievements of the black community in our society and the struggles that they faced. Most channels geared toward children had segments for educating kids on some of the most famous African Americans and why we take the month of February to commemorate them. However, we never learned about the history behind the month long celebration itself.
Like all other national acknowledgements, Black History Month has not always been a widely known event. It actually did not even start out as Black History Month. There were a lot of things that had to happen in order for us to be where we are currently with the annual celebration. It all began with an African American historian, named Carter G. Woodson, who felt that schools were doing a disservice by not teaching kids about the parts of American history that centered around African Americans. In 1915, he fought this by founding the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH) with a colleague and minister, Jesse E. Moorland. The ASNLH was dedicated to researching and promoting the accomplishments of the black citizens and others of African descent. A mere eleven years later, the group was able to sponsor a nationwide Negro History Week. This event took place during the second week of February, because that week encompassed both President Lincoln and Frederick Douglas’s birthdays which were the 12th and the 14th respectively. Through festivities in clubs and in the classroom, the week had attained the ASNLH’s goal of bringing the public’s attention to the black community and the organization began it’s longer journey towards giving African Americans the recognition they deserved. It was a very slow process trying to integrate black culture and literature into schools. Starting down in the south, Freedom Schools were happy to include the rich history in their curriculum and that prompted middle-class schools everywhere to revise the textbooks during the 1960s. Finally, after gaining popularity and undergoing a name change to Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), the group won a huge victory when in 1976 President Ford made Black History Month a national observance.
So, what do you do with this information now that you know where the spotlight month for African American culture all began? Indulge in the opportunity to celebrate and maybe even learn more about the topic. You can visit one of the many museums across Philadelphia that feature exhibits this month that depict the roots of African American culture or exhibits made by black visionaries. Exercise the mind by reading books by famous black authors like Virginia Hamilton or listen to poems by Langston Hughes. Speaking of listening, you can take this month as an excuse to check out different genres of music like soul, which includes the queen of soul herself, Aretha Franklin. There are endless hours of films you could watch that are directed by black men and women or you could even go back to the movie theater and see Black Panther again, in honor of Black History Month! No matter what you choose to do, just make sure that you explore all of the beautiful and powerful things that black history has to offer.
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