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This is Black History Month in the United Kingdom, and it seems it’s time for a re-evaluation. Throughout its history, an event that began as a commemorative event of heritage, traditions and links between Black populations worldwide, has taken on a corporate feel, growing to encompass events where Black people are paid to talk to Caucasian groups about “unconscious bias” and “allyship”. The anti-racism rallies of the last decade created a surge in the industry of displaying cultural sensitivity. But even that moment has passed. The surge has crested, producing a diluted aftermath of what increasing understanding is for.

The History of Black History Month

First commemorated in the America and its northern neighbor, Black History Month was conceived in 1962 as a week dedicated to Negro history by African American historian Carter G. Woodson with multiple days of celebration and reflection in the middle of February. Black History Month grew out of this initiative and was officially launched in 1970. Today it is observed not only in the North America in February, but also in autumn in the Britain, Deutschland, Éire and the Holland.

The month has transformed since its inception, placing less emphasis on the accounts of transatlantic enslavement and struggles for equality, and greater focus on influential individuals of color in politics, culture, and activism, and widely honoring the impact Black people have made to mold society. It is in schools where Black History Month is most frequently marked, with discussions and heritage festivities. But the method the month is commemorated is a manifestation of the contemporary political context. How it evolves is a valuable example in how assimilation leads to dismantling: the reshaping of Black History Month has stymied the objective of it, which is to address systemic and institutional racism.

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A Disconcerting Period

Few things illustrate how critical it is to reevaluate Black History Month as much as the current time in which it takes place this year. In the UK, a resurgent right in the guise of the Reform party is ahead in surveys. In the recent season we observed the biggest extreme right demonstration in British history. Kemi Badenoch, the Black leader of the Conservative party, is a staunch adversary of anti-racism activism, and we are in a place where a member of parliament feels empowered to state that the absence of Caucasian individuals in parts of a city is a cause for alarm. At the same time, far-right parties are growing in the EU as a whole.

In the US, a colossal assault against diversity initiatives and positive discrimination has been carried, often successfully, to the highest courts of the state. A campaign to remove the history of people of color and narrative from the archives is ongoing. One of Donald Trump's early administrative commands focused on the museum of African American legacy, and the renowned cultural organization, alleging that they of a “concerted and widespread effort to change the national past” by portraying America “as fundamentally prejudiced”.

In this context, the observance represents how little it can be effective if it is confined to either obligatory business commemorations, or stripped of political content festivities of historical achievements, rather than challenging the situation of the present. It also demonstrates how its restricted time span means that it is separated from the wider consistent effort that is needed. Denise Miller, a professor at University of Greenwich, expressed it perfectly when she voiced worries about the temporary “tokenism” of the celebration. “The difficulty with adopting a symbolic stance”, she stated, “is that it typically leads to that Black History Month turns into a fleeting performance rather than a driver of transformation.”

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Rethinking, But Not Jettisoning

Determining how to adapt, revise and extend efforts for equal rights and acknowledgment in such times of discouragement and concern is a difficult task. There is a inclination to just eliminate events including Black History Month completely, believing they are no longer suitable, or are vestiges of an time that has been ineffective.

However, regardless of the situation, Black History Month, and in fact the complete comprehensive structure and heritage of activism for racial justice – community-based BLM initiatives, diversity equity and inclusion initiatives, and yes, even those talks to businesses – constitute an framework that a significant effort has been dedicated to. It is there not merely to decline as the situation evolves (and in fact, regresses), but to be a dynamic entity.

So what would a fresh vibrant Black History Month look like? To begin with, it would be more than a single focused period: something that is distributed through the year (as some institutions are already beginning to do), sections of its curriculum (particularly around notable African descendants) incorporated into educational programs. It would also be a time that does not shy away from politics, and provides room for people, particularly young people, to express their concerns and stories. What use is basic knowledge of the bygone era when it doesn’t reckon with the current situation of extreme conservative demonstrations in the street? Establishments who celebrate it should not be comforted with the non-confrontational words of hidden discrimination and awareness of minor insults, but challenged by the dangers that affect everyone if anti-racism is not treated with importance. In short, Black History Month should be made current, critical, and adaptive. Maybe an complete renaming is necessary – Present-Day African Heritage Celebration.