Black History Month

When reviewing the history of the civil rights movement of the 20th century, much still remains obscure. The actual history is a broad mosaic composed of individual portraits of people whose names will seldom be known to the textbooks we teach from. The problem is that the big picture comprising these portraits has been forced into a form and shape that serves a single narrative…one that has been reduced to a single month, a few national holidays, and ultimately (and most reductively), t-shirts and tweets. Caring or at the very least the appearance of caring about this hidden American History has become rather affordable in terms of collateral. Social media has become a double-edged sword; a vastly useful tool for organization and informing the masses about your cause on one edge, and the most convenient and expedient tool for Slacktivism*on the other edge. The movement for civil rights in this country has long been known colloquially as simply “The Struggle” for generations. We can tie this concept to the famous Frederick Douglass quote, “if there is no struggle, there is no progress”. The struggle has produced many slogans and phrases under which those who march for change congregate and resist, and each generation adds a new one to the culture. The most prominent of this generation will most definitely be “Black Lives Matter”

For some odd reason, this statement has somehow come to be seen as something politically incendiary. I won’t speak to how anyone who is not walking around in Black skin just so happens to feel about it because the truth of the matter is that I have addressed their feelings repeatedly: throughout classes, conversations, and meetings. The phrase is not a rallying cry for me…nor is it something that I state to make anyone uncomfortable. To me, the phrase “Black Lives Matter” is existential.  It is a statement of self-affirmation; my efforts, my journey, my life matters. This is the reality of how every Black person feels when they hear these words. It should not be something that they only get to feel during the shortest month of the year. 

I am one of a few Black instructors here on campus and while I have been received warmly by the Sierra Vista family in the years I have taught here, this has not been the case elsewhere in my life. Black History Month is not commonly observed in corporate America so lord only knows how often I’ve been able to celebrate February in my career. I am grateful for this. This school has been wonderful in doing its best to celebrate the history of African Americans, but we cannot turn a blind eye to the Black history that is being made today outside of our school walls. Let us celebrate the past but also listen for and encourage new and exciting voices of the future. As Black History Month 2022 comes to a close, I challenge everyone to keep the celebration going. Let’s remember to celebrate the history being made every day, not just in February, not just in a class, but in the lives we are trying to live.