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JOURNAL
January 2008
THOUGHTS ON BLACK HISTORY MONTH
Woodson was the man who, in 1926, came up with the idea of February (in deference to the births of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln) as a month to celebrate the achievements of black Americans.
The fact is, we should be celebrating Black History every month, along with Hispanic history, Asian history, Arab history, European history, Native American history, women’s history and gay and lesbian history. An American history that excludes any of our people isn’t really an American history; it’s a whitewash. Except for the Native Americans, we all took a journey to get here.
Some would argue that without a Black History Month, most Americans would never pay any attention to the achievements of blacks. I’m reminded, similarly, of a quote by Bette Midler made some years ago when there was talk of de-sexing the Oscars instead of having categories for male and female. “Then we’d never get nominated for anything,” she remarked. It may well be the case that the status quo would prevail for a while if we tore down the artificial boundaries and categories, but those of good will would have to work all that much harder to incorporate the achievements of all people all the time and eventually we could broaden our study of people’s achievements beyond segregated months. Call me a dreamer.
I find myself in a unique and wonderful position myself, one that few people of any race get to experience. I teach at City College, perhaps one of the most diversified student bodies in the nation. As a white man, I am most definitely in the minority. Likewise, I am a deacon at Middle Collegiate Church in the East Village, one of only about 3% of American congregations that are intentionally multi-ethnic and multi-cultural.
Martin Luther King famously pointed out that 11:00 a.m. on Sunday morning was the most segregated hour in America. Sadly, it probably still is. As my pastor, Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis, recently pointed out in her Martin Luther King Day address, “If we do not learn to get along with each other here on Earth, what are we going to do when we get to heaven? There is no black heaven, white heaven, Hispanic heaven, Asian heaven, gay heaven, straight heaven. We’re all in it together.”At Middle, I am part of a beautiful, visionary experiment that should be the norm.
Can you imagine the reaction I’d get if I walked into the classroom this month and said, “Today, we’re celebrating Black History Month”--as if I were going to ignore black history the rest of the year. My students are living their history every day of the year and it is every bit as important as mine.
Jacqui Lewis also points out that being purposeful about creating multi-ethnic, multi-cultural settings is hard work. Some will think the mix is “too white,” others “too black.” The music will not always please everyone, the difficulty of learning a second language will be too great, the mistrust will have to be talked about. To which I say, “So what?” If we always take the easy, well-paved road, we will never learn, change or grow. There is nothing more dull than stagnant people, steadfastly sticking to the same patterns day after day, year after year.
We call ourselves a melting pot, but for the most part we are not. We live in different neighborhoods, go to different schools and places of worshop when we can, watch different television shows (has anyone else noticed the disappearance of television shows featuring black families on network television?), and often support different causes and candidates. How will this ever change if we continue to willfully separate ourselves from our fellow citizens of all colors, religions and sexual orientations?
In March, we will celebrate the 30th anniversary of Women’s History Month. Imagine! Women make up more than half the population and we’ll study their history for a month!
Under the current artificial system, we’ll celebrate Barack Obama in February and Hillary Clinton in March (you know, special interests!) then go back to the “normal” state of affairs in April.
I think America is ready to stand up for all people all the time. Are you with me? If not now, when?
What's Your Opinion?
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