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Black History Month is celebrated annually in the United States in the month of February. Carter G. Woodson chose the second week of February for Negro History Week in 1926 because it marks the birthdays of two men who greatly influenced the black American population, Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. Later on in 1976, as the nation reached its bicentennial, the week was expanded into an entire month. However, February has much more than Douglass and Lincoln to show for its significance in black American history. For example:
- February 23, 1868: W.E.B. DuBois, important civil rights leader and co-founder of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), was born.
- February 3, 1870: The Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was passed, granting blacks the right to vote.
- February 25, 1870: The first black U.S. Senator, Hiram Rhodes Revels, took his oath of office.
- February 12, 1909: The NAACP was founded by a group of concerned black, jewish and white citizens in New York City.
- February 1, 1960: In what would become a civil-rights movement milestone, a group of black Greensboro, North Carolina, college students began a sit-in at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter.
- February 21, 1965: Malcolm X, the militant leader who promoted Black Nationalism, was shot to death by three Black Muslims.
History books had barely started covering black history when the tradition of Black History Month was started. At that point, most representation of blacks in history books was only in reference to the low social position they held, with the exception of George Washington Carver. Black History Month can also be referred to as African-American History Month, or African Heritage Month.
In the United Kingdom (UK), Black History Month is celebrated in the month of October. The official guide to Black History Month in the UK* is published by Sugar Media, Ltd., who produce 100,000 copies nationwide.
Black History Month exposes the harms of racial prejudice and cultivates black self-esteem following centuries of socio-economic oppression . It is an opportunity to recognize the significant contributions people with African heritage have made and continue to make in such areas as education, sports, medicine, art, culture, public services, economic development, politics and human rights.
Criticism
Black History Month sparks an annual debate about the continued usefulness of a designated month dedicated to the history of one skin colour. Critical op-ed pieces have appeared in the Cincinnati Enquirer and USA Today [http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnist/wickham/2005-02-14-wickham_x.htm.
Many black radical/nationalist groups, including the Nation of Islam, have criticized Black History Month.
On the December 18, 2005 episode of 60 Minutes, actor Morgan Freeman criticized Black History Month as inadequate. "I don't want a black history month. Black history is American history." Freeman believes that racism will persist as long as individuals continue to identify themselves by their skin color.
Woodson, creator of Negro History Week, hoped that the week would eventually be eliminated, when African-American history would be fully integrated with American history.
External links
- It's more than History (requires Macromedia Flash player)
"Black History Month"