Quick guide to Black History Month

JASON MAGDER, Montreal Gazette 

Quick guide to Black History Month

The figure of Michelle Obama was unveiled in celebration of black history month.

DON EMMERT / AFP/Getty Images

So what's happening?

Don't you know? It's Black History Month, starting today. We look back at contributions that black people have made throughout history and honour those who fought for equal rights, or the abolition of slavery.

I know we have this every year, but was it always a full month?

Not always. It started in 1926, when historian Carter G. Woodson proposed an observance to honour the accomplishments of black Americans. He called it Negro History Week, and it was called that right up to the 1970s, when it was renamed Black History Week. He chose the second week of February because it marks the birthday of renowned abolitionist Frederick Douglass (Feb. 14) and U.S. President Abraham Lincoln (Feb. 12), who abolished slavery. In 1976, it was changed to Black History Month in the U.S. Although Canadians marked the month, the House of Commons only officially recognized Black History Month in 1995 when Jean Augustine, the first black female MP, introduced the motion, which was unanimously adopted.

Is it only celebrated in the U.S. and Canada then?

No, Britain also has a Black History Month, although it's the month of October.

Am I the only one who thinks it's a bit funny that we celebrate Black History Month, when no other cultures get a Month dedicated to their histories?

In fact, you aren't. Many black people believe it's demeaning to devote a month to black history, because it sends the message that black history is separate from the history of everyone else. In fact, noted actor Morgan Freeman said it well when he once told journalist Mike Wallace: "You're going to relegate my history to a month? ... Which month is White History Month? ... I don't want a Black History Month. Black history is American history."

That's a good point. But is there a White History Month or a Hispanic History Month?

Actually, Hispanics do have their own month now in the United States, but they call it Hispanic Heritage Month to not sound too similar. It was started in 1968, as a week-long event, but then expanded. Now it runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. As for White History Month, such a thing doesn't yet exist, but like everything, it's a political issue. Some people are advocating for such an animal, saying white people should be treated the same as minorities. They have an online petition that has garnered more than 3,600 signatures. So you have members of minorities saying they shouldn't be singled out, and you have people in the majority saying they should have their culture celebrated, too.

So there's quite a bit of controversy around Black History Month in the U.S. What do people say about it in Canada?

Canada seems to have the opposite problem as the U.S. It seems Black History Month is a bit unknown here. A recent survey conducted by TD Canada Financial Group showed that only 32 per cent of the Canadian population is aware that Black History Month falls in February. Obviously, those statistics will change dramatically as a result of this Bluffer's Guide, but it seems the debate is much more tame north of the border.

But I guess you can't blame Canada for that. In the U.S., the civil rights movement produced heroes such as Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks.

We still have our own share of Black heroes, like Jackie Robinson, the first black Major League baseball player, who got his start playing for the Montreal Royals. We also have Willie O'Ree, the first black player in the National Hockey League.

Those Canadian heroes are sports figures. I'm not saying sports aren't important, but did Canada have any sort of rights movement of its own?

Canada actually has its own version of the Rosa Parks story. Parks, you remember, was arrested in 1955 for violating segregation laws after she refused to give up her seat on a bus for a white man in Montgomery, Ala. Like Parks, Canada's Viola Desmond sparked a civil rights movement when she bought a ticket to a movie in 1946 at the Roseland Theatre in New Glasgow, N.S. Instead of sitting in the balcony, she took a seat in the downstairs whites-only portion of the racially segregated theatre. She was arrested, thrown in jail, and later charged and sentenced to 30 days in prison and a $20 fine. Her supporters then challenged the Nova Scotia government, which finally repealed the law of segregation in 1954.

Open ended question: Do you think most Canadians are knowledgeable about the history of black people and their fight for equal rights in this country?

Sources: Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Newsweek, Petitiononline.com, Washington Post

