I wonder how long Black History Month will exist.
How long will we set aside time to reflect on the achievements of our Black citizens? To celebrate the contributions of inventors and professionals, artists, musicians, doctors and nurses, scientists, scholars and teachers? How long will we trace the path of their ancestors from slavery to freedom? How long will we confront the hostility, violence, discrimination, deprivations and hardships they endured?
It was this history that Carter Woodson believed had to be told.
This accomplished historian, author and journalist founded the Association for the Study of African American Life and History in 1915. He was among the first scholars to study the history of the Black African diaspora in the United States. In 1926, he launched Negro History Week, a precursor to what became Black History Month. He yearned to see Black history come alive. He insisted on giving visibility to the achievements of Black Americans without ignoring — or whitewashing — the harsh realities of their lives.
As this effort for visibility and authenticity gained ground, opposing forces gathered strength. They sought to blur or obliterate that history. They promoted an alternative narrative shaped by a preference for a version of history with white supremacy at its core. Those forces gained support from Donald Trump and his MAGA followers. They attempt to rewrite history for their own purposes. In doing so, they often ignore or disparage Black Americans.
This antipathy is evident in the unrelenting attacks on policies and programs designed to offset the enduring setbacks of slavery, segregation and discrimination.
Resentment toward diversity, equity and inclusion — recast by critics as discrimination against white people — has intensified. It fuels grievances among those who feel left out. It also gives bad actors and opportunistic politicians platforms to advance themselves at the expense of their fellow Americans.
Explaining, and at times defending, the values embodied in the phrase Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is not for the faint-hearted. During Black History Month, however, I feel an obligation to speak.
Sign with American flag “We want white tenants in our white community,” opposite the Sojourner Truth homes, a new U.S. federal housing project in Detroit. A riot was caused by white neighbors’ attempts to prevent Black tenants from moving in, February 1942. Photo by Arthur S. Siegel. Source: Library of Congress.
These concepts and initiatives remain widely misunderstood. In some cases, that misunderstanding is intentional. Programs are sometimes awkwardly designed. They are not always appreciated as intended: Legitimate efforts to address past discrimination.
That discrimination included denial of rights, redlining and barriers to credit, home ownership, jobs and schools. The goal was to compensate for wrongs and accelerate opportunities long denied to Black Americans.
These efforts have provoked resistance and ridicule. They have also revealed the persistent shortage of opportunities for Black citizens. They underscore the need for justice and fairness to take center stage.
If special advantages to aid access are no longer permitted through affirmative action or targeted support, so be it. The focus must then shift. We must oppose any efforts to deny access or manipulate circumstances — including voting districts — to block opportunities for Black Americans to engage, compete, thrive and serve the nation.
The fight continues. The federal government and some states are again pursuing measures that limit opportunity. Vehement attacks on D.E.I. barely mask the racist views of some proponents. The scope of these efforts is broader than it appears.
Increasingly, it is clear that those behind the attacks are seeking new ways to restrict the autonomy of people whose ancestors were denied control over their own lives. Yet they are meeting resistance, as descendants of slaves claim their rights, much as their forebears did during Reconstruction.
There was no consensus on what should follow the Civil War. Congress debated readmission of seceded states. Lawmakers clashed over the nature of secession, the conditions for return and the desirability of social reforms. President Lincoln sought reunification. He wanted the nation restored.
Andrew Johnson, Lincoln’s successor, vetoed key legislation. He pardoned Confederate leaders. He allowed Southern states to enact draconian Black Codes restricting the rights of freed slaves. His actions outraged Radical Republicans determined to protect freedmen and punish the South. Johnson survived impeachment but emerged weakened.
In the 1866 midterm elections, Radical Republicans gained majorities in Congress. Reconstruction began. Ulysses Grant was elected president in 1869.
Historians continue to debate Reconstruction’s legacy. Political leaders did restore the union and limit reprisals against the South. Most importantly, they established a constitutional framework for racial equality. The 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments guaranteed freedom, citizenship, due process, equal protection and voting rights.
In the South, African American men voted and held public office for the first time. Sixteen Black Americans served in Congress. More than 600 were elected to state legislatures. Hundreds more held local offices. As History.com notes, their presence marked a profound shift in American democracy.
Part of that assault aimed to increase vulnerability. It sought to render Black citizens invisible, silence their voices and pressure them into submission under the weight of a rogue government.
That was then. It is also now.
Americans trust museums. Ninety-two percent of adults view them as nonpartisan sources of education, according to Wilkening Consulting. Ninety-six percent say they would support lawmakers who fund museums, and 97 percent see museums as vital educational assets. Caro News reports that museums rank just behind friends and family among the most trusted institutions.
Libraries hold similar standing. Opinion polls consistently rank libraries and museums among the most trusted public institutions. Their credibility rests on independence, as reported by ProPublica and explored by the Pew Research Center.
When free from government interference, these institutions serve as community anchors.
Within these cherished spaces, history is learned. Portraits of talent, determination and grit line the walls and pages. Black Americans who resisted and succeeded against formidable odds inspire those who visit.
Despite undeniable progress, the uphill fight persists. The impulse to shape America into a narrower, whiter vision remains a constant thorn in the republic’s side. It is a fight that must be won.
All the more reason Black History Month must endure. It offers an opportunity to affirm, again and again, that this nation is strengthened by diversity. America is a multiracial democracy. It is better for being exactly that.
Black History Month provides that opportunity.