Are those in this thread who think Black history Month is so unnecessary really aware of why it exists in the first place? And how little has changed in the teaching of history?
"
Those who have no record of what their forebears have accomplished lose the inspiration which comes from the teaching of biography and history.
These are the words of Dr. Carter Godwin Woodson, distinguished Black author, editor, publisher, and historian (December 1875 - April 1950). Carter G. Woodson believed that Blacks should know their past in order to participate intelligently in the affairs in our country. He strongly believed that Black history - which others have tried so diligently to erase - is a firm foundation for young Black Americans to build on in order to become productive citizens of our society."
See
http://www.chipublib.org/002branches...oodsonbib.html
Despite the presence of people of African decent in the United States for over four hundred years, our history was and to some extent is largely excluded from school curriculums in this country. We got the token mention as the savages in Africa rescued and brought to America to be the slaves happily helping the Whites build the South as jubilance1922 mentioned. That was it. For a very long time. Carter G. Woodson gave birth the idea of Negro History Week in February in 1926 as a way to infuse SOME relevant history related to the contributions and accomplishments of African Americans into the curriculum. Black history has been systematically and decidedly excluded from history curriculums. Its value has never been fully appreciated and the concept of teaching events that involve contributions of African American contemporaneously with other events in history has remained lost on too many authors of history books.
I agree with Morgan Freeman that there should not need to be a Black history month or a (fill in the blank) history month. But until there is a true revamp of the way history is taught in this country and relevant accomplishments of African Americans, Women, Native Americans, etc. are integrated into the storytelling of history, I believe in doing whatever is necessary to make sure this information reaches our children one way or another.
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