Obama Aside, We Still Need Black History Month

By: Yanick Rice Lamb

Too many all-nighters from newspaper reporting, term papers and other homework assignments had left me a little groggy. It was the late 70s back at Ohio State University. I was sitting in one of my favorite classes, which focused on black women’s history, and the professor was telling us about Sojourner Truth. “By the way,” she offered as an aside, “Sojourner Truth gave her ‘Ain’t I a Woman’ speech up the road in Akron, Ohio.”

I sat upright so quickly that my head, which had been comfortably propped in my palm, nearly snapped off. I was stunned. I thought about all those Ohio history classes I’d taken from elementary through high school. No one ever said anything about the abolitionist or her 1851 lecture at a national women’s rights convention in my hometown. I had to hear it years later as a young adult, 120 miles away. On my next trip home, I visited the main library downtown to do some research. Turns out that Truth had given her speech a few blocks away, roughly on the former site of the art museum, where I’d spent many Saturdays.

This incident was an early reminder of the vast omissions on the black diaspora in textbooks. It reinforced my commitment as a journalist to tell untold stories and to emphasize the need for all of us to learn more black history and pass on that knowledge. This includes commemorating Black History Month. Since 1994, I’ve worked full time for black companies and institutions. Essentially, I’m thinking about our past and present contributions 24/7. Even though every day is black history day in my world, I still see the importance of shining a spotlight on our heritage. We shouldn’t end Black History Month, as some have suggested, just because President Barack Obama is in the White House.

No achievement, regardless of its magnitude, is reason enough to wipe out Black History Month. People all over the world are still skittish about race. The persistence of hate crimes and stereotypes shows how far we haven’t come. Just think about those who deny any racial overtones in the N.Y. Post's “stimulus” cartoon of a bullet-ridden monkey.

Obama Aside, We Still Need Black History Month....