Every February, Black pain is brought to the spotlight once again.
Black History Month (BHM) urges people to think about the centuries of misery that the Black community was forced to endure, as oppression and pain are put in the spotlight. But education centering the Black experience should focus on more than just the negative parts of history. Black history isn’t just a record of discrimination and hate; it tells a story of invention, joy, and resilience.
Celebrating the Black experience can be a point of contention. Some argue that BHM has become something for companies to commodify and profit from, and that celebrating the month in a positive way undermines the horrors of slavery and Jim Crow.
The reality is that companies do have a history of taking advantage of the month to make more profits, where a single Instagram post of acknowledgement has been enough to boost engagement for a number of brands. Then, once February’s over, posts are buried on feeds, and Black History Month t-shirts are taken off the racks.
But how corporations choose to acknowledge Black History month doesn’t take away from personal and smaller-scale commemoration. Recognizing the positive parts of Black history doesn’t take away from the truth. It doesn’t try to excuse the fact that Black Canadians (and Americans) are affected by racial discrimination that’s so deeply embedded in our society.
Instead, it encourages people, regardless of race, to remember that Black people are more than just the embodiments of trauma. It reminds society that the Black community, more than anything, has a history of perseverance that only gets stronger with time.
While Jim Crow was limiting opportunities and endangering the lives of African Americans in the South, those in the North were participating in the Harlem Renaissance. They used the opportunities available to them to create art, music, and literature, and beyond that, their dedication to racial uplift benefited Black communities everywhere.
It’s possible to be joyous and celebrate while remaining aware of historical suffering. Celebrations of cultures are accepted and even encouraged in the 21st century, but would have been difficult for African descended people just a few decades ago. Public gatherings were not only to have fun—they emphasized the presence of Black people in spaces that weren’t always welcoming.
Engaging with positive aspects of Black history can still be a form of remembrance. If celebrations are done consciously,
with history in mind, there should be no shame in engaging in these festivities. Especially when they’ve played such an important role in the persistence of Black communities around the world.
There are ways to celebrate Black history and to appreciate the achievements of Black people in an uplifting way, without disregarding the past. Recognizing that joy is just as essential to the Black experience as sadness providesroom for a more well-rounded study.
Only focusing on a traumatic past and refusing to create room for happiness in the present, risks diminishing the importance of resilience in stories about struggles. If Black History and Futures Month really intends to honour both what has passed and what’s to come, confining it to pain makes the “future” seem bleak and hollow.
Black history deserves to be looked at in its entirety. What emerged from the suffering can be just as important as the event itself. The Black experience has never been confined to trauma, and it shouldn’t be remembered that way.
Mayah is a 3rd year History student and one of The Journal’s QTBIPOC Advisory Board members.
Tags
Black Culture, black history month, Celebrations, History
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