I appreciate the good intentions behind Black History Month, but now it seems the annual celebration is just a clever way for America to apologize to us for hundreds of years of inhumane treatment and oppression. Does one month’s time suffice a celebration for people who sacrificed their lives for our freedom and dreams?
We should be doing this every day, but instead, we wait for February to acknowlege those who have been celebrated over and over again–Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Rosa Parks and countless others. What about CT Vivian, Charles Hamilton Houston and Ethel Waters; bet you didn’t even know who they were. In fact, there are black activists making an impact today–what about their accomplishments?
Let’s work on having more black history taught in public schools, colleges and universities. How about fighting for more positive black images in the media? Black people are empowering and inspiring each other every day. There’s no need to limit a celebration of us to one month. Celebrate blackness every day.