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Because many folks are more worried about keeping their jobs/houses - or getting a job - during this economic crisis than anything else, it seems as though the idea of attending Black History Month festivities have been put on the back burner.
More importantly, the recent inauguration of America's first African-American president - whom after winning the election by a landslide by folks that many presumed (quite cynically) were able to put their racial biases aside in favor of putting a Democrat back in power - signified to some that the following changes would happen overnight:
A) America is now a 'post-racial' society;
B) Black people can no longer cry 'racism' when they feel that they have been discriminated against because racism never really existed, right?
C) That black folks will now take a page from the Obama handbook, get jobs and stop robbing, killing and selling drugs - to people who are not black, that is. Oh, and mainstream Hip-Hop and other cultural signifiers that black people can get rich via questionable and somewhat unethical means, will miracously disappear from popular culture.
Many bloggers have also been asking, "do we still need a Black History Month?" Many have wondered whether the annual revisiting of African History makes an impact. Are people more worried about the day-to-day issues than Jim Crow and the Underground Railroad? and more importantly, are they retaining any of the messages though the struggles of their ancestors?
Blogher CE Nordette's blog, The Urban Mother's Book of Prayers says that BHM reminds mothers that they need to teach their children that despite what they see within mainstream media culture, they, just like the people before them, will be able to overcome challenges. Also, because within urban dwellings the educational system does not adequately provide primary courses, that there is a greater chance that children are not being taught history in schools.
Nordette also discusses the Obama Impact on how people view race by saying this:
President Barack Obama is a beacon to many, but focusing on the achievement of one man would be a mistake. For instance, despite seeing President Barack Obama everyday, or maybe because they do, some whites will separate him from the rest of African-Americans and see him as like them and the rest of us the way they've always seen us, through the narrow scope of crime reports on the nightly news. Humans have a tendency to focus on information that supports the prejudices to which they cling.
The awesome blog The Black Critic also noted the Obama effect in terms of the marketing of his image:
A lot of people died to make this moment in history happen. The path to an Obama Presidency was paved by the blood, sweat and tears of millions of people you have never heard of, but who believed in this moment so passionately, they sacrificed everything for it–knowing they would never see the fruits of their sacrifices. Forget the names of the folks you see splattered across Black History Month for a moment. I wanted to pour a tab of brew out for all the anonymous heroes who will never get their names on a calendar. And it seemed a bit cheap, a bit shallow, to sell these soldiers short with merchandise that have no real meaning.
Rachel from Rachel's Tavern argues that we need a 'Black Future Month." She also posted a recent speech from US Attorney General Eric Holder who called people out:
"Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial we have always been and I believe continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards," Holder said.
Race issues continue to be a topic of political discussion, but "we, as average Americans, simply do not talk enough with each other about race."
(Funny. I've got The View on as I'm writing this and Elisabeth Hasselbeck is harping about how offensive Holder's comments on 'cowardly Americans' were. Sigh.) I agree with what he says, as people seem to go into denial mode in the month of February. I get how come we don't get a White History Month? all the time. It is not just about the re-telling of black history, but a chance for people to have open and frank discussions, not just about race and racism but about how to communicate more effectively. Latoya Peterson from Racialicous also agrees:
I would like to see history taught as more of a conversation than a series of events to memorize. How did
