By: Jocelyn Olmos
In the month of February, we celebrate African-Americans and their accomplishments. This month is incredibly special and needs to be recognized. Today we are going to take a look at the history of Black History Month and why we celebrate it.
The history of Black History Month started with Carter G. Woodson. Woodson was a child to enslaved parents, was an author, historian, and the second African-American to earn a Ph.D. at Harvard University. Woodson had noticed that the American Education system wouldn’t teach much information about the accomplishments of African-Americans and formed the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, which is now called the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History. In 1926, Woodson had suggested the idea of a national week dedicated to African-Americans. It would be called “Negro History Week”. This would display everything students learned about Black History throughout the school year. “Negro History Week” would be celebrated the second week of February.
Why do we celebrate Black History Month in the shortest month of the year? It isn’t meant to be spiteful that a month dedicated to people who have been oppressed to be celebrated in the shortest month of the year. Originally the week-long celebration was in the second week of February so it can collide with Abraham Lincoln and Fredrick Douglass’s birthdays. Frederick Douglass was an escaped slave and a public speaker against slavery and President Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery. Also, February 1st is National Freedom Day when the 13th amendment was ratified, to abolish slavery in 1865. In 1976, President Gerald Ford had made the one week of honoring African-Americans achievements into one month.
Achievements of African-American people are Matthew Henson was one of the first men to reach the North Pole in 1909 alongside Admiral Robert Peary. Jesse Owens had won four gold medals in the Olympics in 1936. Many modern inventions we use today were invented by African-Americans. The street lights were invented by Garret Morgan; he was a child to enslaved parents and only had an elementary school education. He also became the first Black person to own a car in Ohio. Alexander Miles invented the automatic elevator doors; before him riding an elevator was risky and complex.
Woodson wanted us to celebrate Black History month as a way to have young African-Americans understand and be proud of who they are and where they came from. This year’s theme for Black History Month is “The Black Family: Representation, Identity, and Diversity”. It was chosen by the same association that Carter G. Woodson founded.
I hope that you are more enlightened about the history of Black History Month and why we celebrate it. Don’t forget to take this month to honor the lives lost in slavery and the ones lost due to fighting for the rights and lives of African-Americans/Black people.
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