Everyone should attend Black History Month events

Celebrating Black history is important. Photo courtesy of breaks.com

In addition to President’s Day and Valentine’s Day, February is also dedicated to celebrating African Americans.

Black History Month is an annual celebration of accomplishments in Black culture in the past and the present. It is also a time for the recognition of the pivotal role that African Americans have played in American history.

I believe African Americans should attend events to gain further understanding on the hardships that plagued our ancestors. Understanding essential events like the Civil Rights Movement and the underground railroad helps one to appreciate the luxuries that we have today as Black people. Basic human rights were not always a given, but it was something that people marched and gave up their lives for.

Attending Black History Month events should also give African Americans a sense of pride. Learning about all the things African Americans contributed to in this country will surprise you. It was once illegal for African Americans to be literate. African Americans have turned their hardships into their success stories. Going to Black History Month events will fill your mind with success stories and it will make you feel like you can do anything you put your mind to.

Other races should attend Black history month for some of the same reasons. Hearing about people like Rosa Parks, Frederick Douglas, and W.E.B Dubois will give you a new respect for African Americans. When you understand things from the past, it allows you to look forward with a new perspective. Going to Black history plays and events will aid in giving them that understanding.

Black History Month originated out of “Negro History Week,” started by acclaimed Black historian Carter G. Woodson and other important black figures of the time.

Carter G. Woodson believed that African Americans should be visible in American history. Since 1976, the month of February has been chosen by the government as Black History Month. Other countries also devote a month to celebrating black history such as Canada and The United Kingdom.

Contrary to popular belief Black History Month is still important even though certain racist policies have been abolished. Other races tend to forget that black history is an essential part of American history. Everyone should attend black history events so they can truly understand the many complexities of the black experience.

African Americans were once kings and queens who were taken from their homelands and reduced to being enslaved in the new world. They experienced some of the worst hardships that would mentally break the average human being.

Black History Month is like a success story that shows a race of people who aren’t victims, but who are survivors whose faith surpassed all understanding.

African Americans are more than our physical appearance. We are more than harmful stereotypes. African Americans are warriors who went from being viewed as three-fifths of a person to major leaders in the United States.

Everyone should attend Black History events so they could have a better understanding of African Americans.