What does Black History Month (BHM) mean to me?

We celebrate Black History Month to recognize the sacrifices, contributions, and achievements of African Americans to the United States and the world.

In 1926, Carter G. Woodson, a Harvard-trained educator, working with the Association for the Study of Negro Life established Black History Week – an opportunity to honor the largely unknown contributions of those of African descent and to celebrate the essence of Black History.

Many people may believe that black history in America is only slavery and the civil rights movement. However, black history is so much fuller than that. Our history is the Tuskegee Airmen, who displayed what prestigious aviators black men could be. Our history is Garret Morgan, who created the stoplight and the gas mask. Our history is Mary Beatrice Davidson Kenner, who invented the sanitary belt to help make an easier life for all women. Our history is Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X, two ends of the same goal and the same fight. Our history is Maya Angelou and Angela Davis. As a whole we created generations of doctors, preachers, lawyers, athletes, actors, inventors, scientists, teachers, and the list goes on.
Black History Month is not just a time to celebrate Black Americans who have paved the way for us all to thrive, it is also a celebration of our knowledge. It’s a reflection of the past, present and future in African American Culture. It’s a reminder of all the positive things that have come from our culture and how it made a huge impact on future generations. It is a time for everyone to experience culture and the roots of many things that have evolved from those of African American decent.
African American history is America’s history.
Remembering the past is important to create pathways toward greater understanding, productive dialogue, cross-cultural trust, and reconciliation. Discovering those core pieces of American history is vital to building these bridges.
Black History is about transformation, consciousness, definition, and debunking myths and lies.
What does Black History Month mean to me??
It is both a call and a light.
Black history month is a light in the darkness that shows a way forward.
Black history is about more than a month, but this month reminds me to pause and locate myself within history.


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