As we celebrate the premiere of Black Panther with all its beautiful Blackness along with the news that Sade will be making a musical appearance in A Wrinkle In Time, Black History month is being interrupted with some disturbing news.
According to New York Magazine, there is a new finding from Public Policy Polling revealing how some voters truly feel about Black History Month. During a National survey of registered voters, one of the questions asked was if they had unfavorable or favorable opinions towards our historic month. Additionally, the voters were asked if, in turn, there should be a “White History Month.”
“Longing for a return to White History isn’t the only sentiment behind the MAGA slogan,” said Ed Kilgrove of New York Magazine. “But pretending it’s not there at all is an act of denial as egregious as the desire to turn back the clock and exult in the unity and strength of American Greatness as defined in the 1950s.”
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What the numbers reveal
According to the results, the respondents favored Black History Month with a 57% to 18% difference, and opposed the creation of White History Month celebration by a 58% to 22% difference.
Digging even deeper, it was discovered that the results from the 2016 presidential election showed that Trump voters were in support of Black History Month by only 38% versus Hillary Clinton supporters who were 75% in favor. For Trump voters when asked if a White History Month was needed, 37% agreed. The results were shocking, but not surprising based on our current political climate and elected President.
Why Black History is necessary
This is not the first time the validity of Black History Month is being questioned. Celebrating our culture has long been deemed as “racist.” Dr. Derrick R. Brooms, a sociology and Africana Studies professor at the University of Cincinnati, believes that assembling all of our trials and triumphs into just one month is doing us more of a disservice than we know.
“Black History is an odd celebration. It is essentially a retelling of the past that is “limited” to one month of the year, which in fact, only continues legacies of denial and denigration of Black life and Black contributions,” Brooms wrote for TheGrio.
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That being said, there are also people like Stacey Dash who don’t share the same sentiments. Last January, the “Clueless” actress shared her thoughts saying that Black History Month and BET need to be eliminated.