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Black History Month is an annual commemoration that began in the United States and is also known as African-American History Month. Governments in the United States and Canada have officially recognized it, and it has lately been observed in Ireland and the United Kingdom. It began as a way to commemorate significant people and events in African diaspora history. It is observed in February in the United States and Canada, and in October in Ireland and the United Kingdom.

In February 1969, black educators and Black United Students at Kent State University suggested Black History Month for the first time. A year later, from January 2 to February 28, 1970, Kent State hosted the first Black History Month event.

When President Gerald Ford recognized Black History Month in 1976, during the celebration of the United States Bicentennial, it was celebrated all across the country in educational institutions, centers of Black culture, and community centers large and small. He urged Americans to “take advantage of the opportunity to recognize the too-often overlooked accomplishments of Black Americans in every field of endeavor throughout our history.”

United States

The beginning of Black History Month was welcomed with enthusiastic enthusiasm in the Black community; it inspired the formation of Black history clubs, an increase in interest among teachers, and attention from progressive whites.

Black History Month has grown beyond its initial acceptability in educational institutions since its start. Every year, Carter Woodson’s group, now known as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), chooses a subject. In 2022, for example, “Black Health and Wellness” emphasized medical scholars, health care professionals, and health results. The Wall Street Journal described Black History Month as “a time when African Americans’ culture and contributions take center stage” in a range of cultural institutions such as theaters, libraries, and museums.

United Kingdom

Black History Month was first observed in the United Kingdom in October 1987. The year 1987 was designated as the African Jubilee because it coincided with the 150th anniversary of Caribbean emancipation, the centennial of Marcus Garvey’s birth, and the 25th anniversary of the Organization of African Unity, an institution dedicated to advancing the progress of African states.

Black History Month in the United Kingdom took place under the direction of Ghanaian analyst Akyaaba Addai-Sebo, who worked as a special projects coordinator for the Greater London Council (GLC) and organized a cooperation to get it started. The first Black History Month observance in the United Kingdom took place on October 1, 1987, when Dr. Maulana Karenga of the United States was invited to an event regarding Black people’s contributions to history by the Greater London Council.

Some institutions have come under criticism for promoting Black History Month with photographs of persons from British Asian backgrounds, despite the fact that the term “black” refers to political blackness, which includes all people of color.

Developments

When it was first formed, Black History Month sparked considerable debate. Those who thought Black History Month was only for educational institutions questioned whether it was fair to limit the celebration of Black history to one month rather than integrating Black history into mainstream education throughout the year.

Another concern was that, contrary to the original motivation for Black History Month, which was a desire to rectify how American schools failed to portray Black historical figures as anything other than enslaved people or colonial subjects, Black History Month could reduce complex historical figures to overly simplified objects of “hero worship.”

Others have called the celebration a kind of racism. Morgan Freeman and Stacey Dash, both actors and directors, have challenged the idea of designating only one month as Black History Month. “I don’t want a Black history month,” Freeman said. “American history is black history.”

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