President Donald Trump‘s executive order to ban diversity, equity, and inclusion appears to be causing confusion regarding whether federal agencies can observe Black History Month. A new report from the Wall Street Journal found that Department of State officials inquired about BHM, which begins on Saturday, following Trump’s orders to eliminate all DEI federal programs and offices and reverse decades-old enforcement of racial and gender discrimination laws.
In response to the query as to whether the department could celebrate Black History Month, new guidance sent by the agency’s public affairs office told State officials that they should highlight the “valuable contribution of individual Americans throughout U.S. history while ensuring our public communications maintain the spirit of the directive eliminating DEAI programs.”
However, the guidance advised that there would be “no restrictions” on content or programming related to accessibility or people with disabilities, the WSJ reports.
The outlet cites a State Department official who said their interpretation of the directive would mean there would be “no public-facing messages or events about Black History Month.”
The official told the WSJ, “That’s how we’re reading it,” adding, “The diplomats I spoke to today, with decades of experience, couldn’t remember a time we failed” to observe Black History Month.
Black History Month has been recognized by every U.S. president since 1976 (including President Trump during his first term) when President Gerald Ford first observed it. The annual observation of February as Black History Month dates back to 1926, when it was known as Negro History Week. It was established by Carter G. Woodson, the “Father of Black History,” and Jesse E. Moorland, who founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History.
The goal was to educate the public about the central role Black Americans played in U.S. history. Before long, schools and communities across the country were celebrating the unofficial observance. By the 1960s, during the Civil Rights Movement, Negro History Month had evolved to Black History Month on college campuses.
In a historic moment, President Ford issued a public message urging Americans to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”
But now it appears the nearly 50-year tradition could be coming to an end under the Trump administration if interpretations of the president’s executive order are accurate. As previously reported, theGrio did not receive an official response from the White House after inquiring about whether or not the administration had moved to end the observance of Black History Month; however, an official acknowledged President Trump’s previous recognition of BHM and pointed to misinformation on social media related to growing public concerns.
During his first term as president, Trump signed proclamations every year observing “National African American History Month” and held official White House events, which recognized the month and paid homage to Black Americans’ contributions to the United States.
“From the earliest days of this nation, African-American leaders, pioneers, and visionaries have uplifted and inspired our country in art, science, literature, law, film, politics, business, and every arena of national life,” Trump said at a White House reception for BHM in 2019. “The depth and glory of these contributions are beyond measure. You know it, I know it, and everybody knows it.”
At the time, Trump said it was important for the country to “remember the heroic legacy of African Americans who bravely battled oppression to usher in a bright new dawn of freedom.”