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It's Black History Month in the Britain, and it feels like it’s time for a re-evaluation. Over the years, an event that started out as a commemorative event of history, culture and the connections between Black populations worldwide, has developed a business-like atmosphere, expanding to include events where individuals of African heritage are paid to talk to predominantly white listeners about implicit prejudice and “allyship”. The demonstrations for racial justice in the 2020s sparked an increase in the business of showcasing anti-racist commitment. However, that period has concluded. The tide has crested, producing a diluted aftermath of what raising awareness is for.

The History of Black History Month

Originally observed in the America and its northern neighbor, Black History Month was conceived in 1962 as “Negro History Week” by Black scholar Carter G. Woodson with multiple days of remembrance and recognition in the middle of February. Black History Month developed from this movement and was formally inaugurated in 1970. Now it is celebrated not only in the US and Canada in February, but also in October in the Britain, the Federal Republic of Germany, Éire and the Netherlands.

The period has evolved since that time, giving reduced attention to the narratives of the slave trade across the Atlantic and civil rights battles, and increasingly on influential individuals of color in public life, creative fields, and advocacy, and broadly celebrating the input Black people have made to influence the nation. It is in schools where Black History Month is most commonly celebrated, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the manner the month is observed is a indication of the political moment. How it evolves is a good lesson in how co-option leads to erosion: the transformation of Black History Month has hindered the purpose of it, which is to tackle embedded and established prejudice.

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A Disconcerting Period

Few things illustrate how important it is to reconsider Black History Month more than the specific period in which it takes place this year. In the Britain, a resurgent right in the form of the Reform political group is top in opinion ratings. In the recent season we observed the most significant ultra-conservative gathering in the history of Britain. Kemi Badenoch, the person of color at the helm of the right-wing political group, is a strong critic of the racial justice movement, and we are in a place where a elected representative feels emboldened to say that “not seeing any white faces” in parts of a city is a source of worry. Meanwhile, ultra-nationalist movements are expanding in the European continent as a complete entity.

In the US, a massive attack against DEI and affirmative action has been carried, frequently with success, to the top legal institutions of the state. A campaign to erase Black history and narrative from the records is ongoing. One of the former president's first executive orders targeted the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the prestigious establishment, alleging that they of a “concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our Nation’s history” by portraying America “as fundamentally prejudiced”.

Against this backdrop, the observance symbolises how insufficiently it can be impactful if it is limited to either routine organizational acknowledgments, or politically neutered festivities of contributions in the past, rather than confronting the conditions of the present. It also demonstrates how its limited duration means that it is separated from the wider consistent effort that is needed. Denise Miller, a prof at a learning establishment, put it best when she raised concerns about the fleeting superficial actions of the month. “The issue with taking a tokenistic approach”, she commented, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month evolves into a transient display rather than a catalyst for change.”

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Reevaluating, Not Abandoning

Establishing how to alter, change and broaden actions for racial equality and recognition in such times of discouragement and concern is a difficult task. There is a urge to just discontinue things like Black History Month altogether, thinking they are simply not fit for purpose, or are relics of an era that has not worked.

However, regardless of the situation, Black History Month, and in fact the entire extended network and heritage of racial movements – grassroots Black Lives Matter organisations, DEI programs, and yes, even those talks to businesses – form an framework that a lot of work has gone into. It is there not only to deteriorate as the situation evolves (and in fact, deteriorates), but to be a dynamic entity.

So what would a contemporary active Black History Month seem? To begin with, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is distributed across all seasons (as some institutions are already starting to implement), sections of its curriculum (particularly around notable African descendants) included in academic syllabi. It would also be a era that does not avoid politics, and leaves space for people, particularly the younger generation, to air their fears and experiences. What purpose serves mere awareness of the past when it fails to address the present reality of ultra-nationalist gatherings in the public spaces? Organizations who celebrate it should not be reassured with the neutral terminology of implicit prejudice and awareness of “microaggressions”, but challenged by the threats that face all if anti-racism is not taken seriously. To summarize, Black History Month should be made current, critical, and adaptive. It could be that an total re-identification is in order – Contemporary Black History Month.