An opportunity to engage into the Black and African past
Black History Month is an annual celebration where Black people remember and honor the great achievements of African Americans and their contributions to the history of the U.S. This event which happens every February is also a time to appreciate Black Histories and a time to know more about the successes of African Americans and black people all over the world instead of the slavery and racism they had to go through.
A race goes into extinction if it has no valuable tradition and history. This belief was what lead Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History to declare the second week of February as the Black History Month in the year 1926. Black History Month which was formerly called Negro History Week has come to remind African Americans of how versatile we have been right from the day we started existing up till this day. Despite the things they had to go through because of their skin color, these men and women still created wonderful stories out of situations that were meant to destroy and end them.
How did Black history month start?
Fifty to sixty years after the Thirteenth Amendment revoked slavery in the United State, Carter G. Woodson and Minister Mooreland started an organization that researches, learns, and makes people aware of the achievement of both Africans and Africa Americans. This organization is called the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History.
The second week of February chosen by Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History now known as the Association for the Study of African American life and History was chosen because it coincides with the date Abraham Lincoln and Federick Douglass were born.
Abraham Lincoln and Federick Douglass were known to have escaped slavery and also helped bring slavery to an end.
Black History Month has become a big event not just in the United States of America but in the United Kingdom too. Since the year 1976, the month of February has been selected as Black History Month by every U.S President as a time to honor the often forgotten African-Americans and their contributions to the growth of the USA.
REASONS TO CELEBRATE BLACK HISTORY MONTH
Black History Month has brought us together and made us see our worth. It has taken us beyond the written text we have read about our history to understanding and appreciating where we've come from and how far we've come. It brings to life the stories of these men and women who made a difference in our world.
Just through hearing stories told during the Black History Month celebration, people's lives and how they see themselves especially when it comes to their self-worth and how much they believe in themselves has improved for the best. This annual celebration has also created opportunities for people to talk about issues Black people are facing daily and possible solutions to these unsolved problems. Moments like this do not leave you feeling ashamed of what you've gone through just because you're Black but it gives you this sense of relief because you have people from all over the world that understand and want to help you live a life you appreciate. This is also the B-Thrive's mission. To give you a platform where you share your experiences as Black but also be yourself.
We can't end this without talking about the way this celebration builds the esteem of our younger ones. It gives them the courage to embrace their Blackness and proud, no matter what people might think. Raising a generation of Black people that know their self-worth is one thing Black History Month has done for the Black community. As we step into this celebration, hold your head up and be proud to be Black because we have come a long way and achieved what people saw as impossible, join in this celebration, interact, ask questions, and appreciate the outstanding achievement of Black people!