By Abbey Zhu ’18, Feature Editor

Black History Month began as Negro History Week in 1926. It was created by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, which deliberately chose the second week of February to celebrate the week to coincide with Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass’s birthdays. This week emphasized the teaching of African American history in public schools throughout the nation, as traditional history curriculums minimized the Black narrative to make it almost nonexistent. In the words of one of the founders of this weeklong celebration, historian Carter Woodson, “If a race has no history, it has no worthwhile tradition, it becomes a negligible factor in the thought of the world and it stands in danger of being exterminated.” Woodson was determined to show the American public the valuable, yet constantly undermined contributions African-Americans made to United States history. Negro History Week encouraged the creation of black history clubs, increased interest about black history among teachers, and garnered support from progressive whites. As Negro History Week was continually celebrated throughout the years, it gained popularity and began to be recognized as a holiday.

In 1976, the United States government recognized the expansion of Negro History Week into Black History Month. President Gerald Ford said, “In celebrating Black History Month, we can seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”[1] Today, Black History Month is celebrated not only in the United States, but also in Canada and the United Kingdom.

I asked Lydia Yeshitla ’17 why Black History Month is important to her. She said, “February is a heartfelt month for me because my African-American roots can finally be appreciated in a school setting. Not only does Black History Month celebrate my culture, but it also highlights the struggles that black people continue to face even at Newark Academy. The month draws attention to the limitations of progress in terms of social justice, and it forces the student body and faculty here at Newark Academy to be more considerate of their actions and words. I see February as the one month that allows our community to come together, be empathetic, and take action to build a more united future.”

According to the 2015 census, 13.3% of the United States population is Black or African American,[2] but 27.4% of African Americans live in poverty – the highest poverty rate among all racial and ethnic groups in the United States.[3] Though the Civil Rights Movement ended in 1968, African-Americans are still facing rampant racism to this day.  According to DoSomething.org, after being arrested, African-Americans in New York are 33% more likely than whites to be detained while facing a felony trial. Mappingpoliceviolence.org states that police killed 246 black people in 2015, 30% of whom were confirmed to be unarmed. 97% of cases involving a police officer killing a black person did not result in any officer(s) being charged. It is clear that to this day, United States society does not value Black life as it does white life. That is why Black History Month is so important in educating Americans about not only the injustices that face African Americans, but also the wonderful things that African Americans have done for the nation. Black History Month is a month of validation and a month of celebration.

It is easy to squeeze an entire ethnic group into a box labelled “other,” “dangerous,” and “thug.” What is difficult is taking a few steps back to recognize your own biases and to make the effort to understand someone different from yourself. Black History Month gives everybody the opportunity to immerse themselves in another culture’s history, and to recognize its significance to the building of the United States that we know today.

[1] http://time.com/4197928/history-black-history-month/

[2] https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045216/00

[3] http://stateofworkingamerica.org/fact-sheets/poverty/