Why Is Black History Month Celebrated in October in the UK and February in the US?
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Black History Month Who started Black History Month? In the US, Black History Month was created by historian Carter G. Woodson (1875-1950). He wanted to challenge preconceptions at the time that black people have no history and founded The Association for the Study of Negro Life and History in 1915 which encouraged scholars and historians to research and preserve black history and culture. In February 1926, Woodson founded Negro History Week. It was later decided that a week wasn't long enough and, against the backdrop of the civil rights movement and the Black Power Movement, Black History Month was born in 1969. Like most things that originate in the US, it wasn't long before word about Black History Month made its way to the UK. After visiting America in the 1970s, Ghanaian-born Akyaaba Addai Sebo, a special projects officer at the Greater London Council, founded the UK's version of Black History Month in 1987 (an interview with Akyaaba Addai Sebo can be found here). Why is Black History Month celebrated in October in the UK and February in the US? The US celebrates in February because the birthdays of former US President Abraham Lincoln and abolitionist Frederick Douglass fall within this month. There are two reasons thought to be behind why Black History Month is celebrated in October in the UK. Traditionally, October is when African chiefs and leaders gather to settle their differences, so Akyaaba chose this month to reconnect with African roots. Additionally, many thought that since it was the beginning of the new academic year, October would give black children a sense of pride and identity. Why is Black History Month important? Black History Month means different things to everyone and pride for this month is eXpressed in a variety of different ways. A file photo of Jamaican immigrants being welcomed to the UK in 1948 (PA Wire/PA Images) For many, Black History Month is a way of reflecting on the diverse histories of those from African and Caribbean descent, taking note of the achievements and contributions to the social, political, economic and cultural development of the UK. Black History Month is not without its opponents, though. Some people argue that it's hardly justified to teach black history in the space of one month and advocate trying to integrate it into the mainstream education system instead. Actor Morgan Freeman has criticised Black History Month on numerous occasions, calling it "ridiculous." "I don't want a black history month," he said, "black history is American history." Inspirational black British women you should know about Jamaican born Mary Seacole acted as an army nurse during the Crimea war (left). Claudia Jones was editor of the West Indian Gazette and founder of the Notting Hill Carnival (right). Adelaide Hall became Briton’s highest paid entertainers in 1941 (left). Margaret Busby became Briton’s youngest and first Black woman book publisher (right). Olive Morris was a political activist and community organiser who established the Brixton Black Women’s Group (left). Musician Joan Armatrading is a three0time Grammy nominee and received an Ivor Novello awrd for outstanding contemporary song collection (right). Athlete Tessa Sanderson became the first British black woman to win an Olympic gold medal (left). Baroness Lawrence OBE campaigned tirelessly for reforms of the police service after her son, Stephen Lawrence, was murdered in a racist attack (right). Maggie Aderin-Pocock MBE is a space scientist and educator. She runs her own company and co-hosts the world’s longest running TV series; The Sky at Night (left). Sharon White was the second permanent secretary at HM Treasury, the first black person, and the second woman, to hold the position (right). The writer Malorie Blackman held the position of children’s Laureate from 2013 – 2015 (left). Dianne Abbott is a British Labour party politician and became the first black woman to hold a seat in the House of Commons (right). Zadie Smith’s acclaimed novel White Teeth was highly decorated for its portrayal of multicultural London (left). West Indies veteran Connie Mark with Hector Watson, Sam King and Lilian Bader. Bader was one of the first black women to join the armed forces (right). A Timeline of two millennia of world shaping individuals and events that define Black History. AD 43 — 2020 AD 43 Roman rule in Britain begins. The Numerus Maurorum Aurelianorum, an African auxiliary unit, takes its position on Hadrian’s Wall (c100-c400) as part of the Roman army and helps guard the outermost reaches of the empire. 400 Kingdom of Ghana. A large sub-Saharan state established. Archaeological evidence suggests that Ghana had achieved a high level of civilisation (advanced metalworking, an indigenous trading network) before Arab travellers arrived around AD750. Its capital, Koumbi Saleh, had a population of 30,000. A 12th-century Muslim, al-Idrisi, told a Norman King Roger II in Sicily that the Ghanaian nobility gave sumptuous banquets with thousands of guests. 668 African-born scholar Hadrian of Canterbury, having rejected a papal request to become Archbishop of Canterbury, travels to Britain with Theodore, who took up the post instead. Hadrian becomes an abbot in Canterbury. 711 General Tariq ibn-Ziyad conquers the Iberian peninsula (Spain and Portugal). The rock of Gibraltar is named after this Moorish general (the Arabic Jabal Tariq means Mount Tariq). He led an eight-year campaign to conquer modern Spain and Portugal in AD 711. 784 Around this time Kanem-Bornu is established by Dougu, the first king of the Zaghawa dynasty. It occupied much of present day Chad. According to an Arab geographer writing in the 10th century, the kingdom was 15 days’ journey wide. 1100 Massive stone structures in Zimbabwe show that a civilisation flourished around this time. Although these ruins are very impressive, with a great wall measuring 246m long, this ancient city is just one of many in the region. More than 600 stone ruins have been identifed in modern-day Zimbabwe and nearly 7,500 have been found in northern South Africa. 1241 This earliest image of a black Briton was discovered in an abbreviated version of the Domesday Book used to collect taxes. 1350 The highly centralised Kingdom of Kongo is established during this period and is surrounded by the formidable kingdoms of Teke, Tio, Dembo and Ndongo. One of its kings, Mani Kongo Diogo I, tried unsuccessfully to stop the Atlantic slave trade. 1508 A poem by William Dunbar called Of Ane Blak-Moir suggests that there were black people in Britain during this period. 1562 John Hawkins is the first Englishman to lead a slave trading voyage from the west coast of Africa. Later Britain would become one of the biggest players in the Atlantic slave trade which led to the enforced transportation of 13 million Africans (according to recent estimates). There are now a number of exhibitions across the UK that detail the close connection between the growth of cities - such as London, Bristol, and Liverpool - and the Atlantic slave trade. 1589 After the defeat of the Spanish Armada, Moroccan ambassador, Mushac Reyz, visits the court of Elizabeth I seeking a military alliance against Spain. In the years of war with Spain that follow, a growing number of Africans arrive in England. Historical records suggest that Queen Elizabeth I was involved in a plan to remove Africans from her realm. Recent evidence suggests a more nuanced picture, but whatever the truth it shows there was a black presence in Britain. 1604 A play featuring a fully rounded black leading character, Othello, is performed for the first time. In some ways Shakespeare’s portrayal of a black character was far superior to the often-dehumanising representations of black people that were to follow in much European literature. 1619 More than 20 enslaved Africans are kidnapped and taken to the English colony of Virginia, opening a new chapter of slavery in north America. 1620 Abomey, capital of the kingdom of Dahomey, is founded around this time in modern-day Benin, west Africa. This was to become a powerful state with a strong connection to the Atlantic slave trade. It survived until 1904. 1623 The annexing of the island of St Kitts signals the beginning of British domination of much of the Caribbean. Many islands in the Caribbean changed hands during this period as European colonisers from France, England, Spain and elsewhere fought to control the islands. 1688 During the period that a constitutional monarchy is established in Britain, Aphra Behn publishes her novel Oroonoko about an African of royal blood. Apart from being one of the first known female writers in the English language, Aphra Behn is credited with producing one of the first attacks on the Atlantic slave trade. 1739 After a long-running war, the Maroons (runaway enslaved Africans who formed their own communities) force Edward Trelawny, the British governor of Jamaica, to sign a peace agreement. Part of the agreement stipulates that the Maroons will return other runaway enslaved Africans who try to join them. 1773 Phillis Wheatley, an African American, comes to London where her poetry had gained a following. She has a book of poems published. 1780 Sugar and slavery become synonymous. From North America to South America to the Caribbean to Australia, this commodity is grown using slavery or other forms of coerced labour. Sugar becomes England’s dominant import from the mid-18th century to the 19th century. This, in turn, fuels the Atlantic slave trade which helps to build the international trade system with its complex web of insurance and credit. 1781 Captain Collingwood throws 132 sick Africans off the slave ship Zong in order to collect insurance money for them.