Every year in February comes the argument of whether we still need to recognize Black History Month. This is especially true for those who consider North America to be a “post-racial” society. It is asserted that black history should be taught along with the rest of North American history and that relegating 28 (or 29) days for the history of those of the African diaspora does not reflect a position of empowerment and, in fact, makes it acceptable to ignore black history for the remaining 11 months of the year. I argue that Canadians and Americans alike still stand to benefit from the official recognition of Black History Month.
In its 15th year as an organization, the UBC Caribbean African Association (CAA) held its second annual Afrofest Gala on February 7. The group’s flagship event, attended by members and non-members, included music, dancing, Ethiopian food, a small live auction, spoken word poetry performances and a fashion show.
Black History Month is still needed because, as a society, we can learn from both the teachings and the historical struggles of black Canadians and black Americans. We need it to fully understand the relations between history and the present situation of people of the African diaspora.
Though much of Afrofest Gala and other events centred on Afro-Carribean topics are focused around the celebration of culture and contributions by those of the African diaspora, the event served as an avenue to creatively discuss some ongoing issues. In an original spoken word poetry piece, CAA member Rochelle Walcott emphatically described being a proud black woman, while denying and dismantling the processes in which North American society wishes to coerce minorities to conform to Eurocentric ideals of beauty and womanhood.
Black History Month is needed to recognize contributions and struggles such as those of the late Vivien Thomas, cardiac surgery pioneer at Johns Hopkins University. He was denied training in medicine not for the content of his character but because of the colour of his skin. Many academics that partake in research remain unaware of the Tuskegee Syphilis project and its consequences for scores of blue-collar African American men, their wives and children. Participants were denied penicillin to treat syphilis, even after it was a proven and readily available treatment. The researchers, primarily white, wished to study the natural history of disease.
It is needed because many Canadians are unaware that institutionalized slavery was practiced above the 49th parallel. Indeed, this truth detracts from the narrative of a multicultural and peaceful Canada that many in our nation are proud of. Confronting and discussing the history and experience of the African diaspora is occuring on the UBC Campus. Both CAA and Color Connected Against Racism, another student-run organization, regularly host film screenings and discussions. The former will show the Oscar-nominated Martin Luther King biopic Selma at the end of Black History Month while the latter plans to show a documentary on El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz (Malcolm X).
When the majority of history that is taught in North American schools is written from the perspective of European males and those of European descent, we should acknowledge that the stories of those of Asian, African and other backgrounds are systematically silenced. Similarly, the stories of many Native populations in the Americas are untold. History does not, in large part, reflect the point of view of women and other oppressed groups. We need to be reminded to seek out history. In a similar vein, CAA President Denise Preira stated that “Afrofest seeks to change the negative metanarrative of the African continent as dark and corrupt” and to emphasize its “beauty, diversity and vivacity.”
I do believe that a reframing of Black History Month would prove useful. I think that a token recital of a number of prominent historical black figures does not do justice to the historical experiences of black peoples and how this relates to the present. Black history goes beyond Harriet Tubman, Elijah McCoy, Rosa Parks and Lincoln Alexander. It is more than the lives and experiences of Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King.
Unlike our neighbours below the 49th parallel, most black individuals in Canada are immigrants or children of immigrants. African History and Canadian Black history is unique and worth learning. In this multicultural nation, the achievements and struggles of many different minority groups should be highlighted regularly. I think we can consider Black History Month as a reminder to try to be more inclusive and broad-minded of the history about which we seek to learn.
Boluwaji Ogunyemi is a writer and dermatology resident physician at UBC.
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