Black History Month: The History and the Controversy
Day Ten: Is Morgan Freeman Right?
The past two days we’ve shared various people’s pros and cons about whether we still need to dedicate a month to learning about the contributions of African Americans. Jessica McElrath asks it this way, “Has African American history now converged with American history, and, therefore, should the celebration be eliminated?”Day Ten: Is Morgan Freeman Right?
Some believe that this is the case. According to Rochelle Riley, yes, the time has come to end Black History Month. Riley asserts that Black history is American history. So, suggests Riley, it’s time to stop celebrating, learning, and being American separately. It is time to be an America where learning about Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians is part of school curriculums.
Morgan Freeman, a long-time critic of the holiday, strongly believes that Black History Month is not just unnecessary but “ridiculous.” According to Freeman in a December 2005 60 Minutes interview, Black history should not be relegated to a month. In fact, argues Freeman, Black History, after all, is American history.
Encouraging the Conversation
I am not saying these are or are not my views. I am inviting conversation. Dialogue. What do you think about the conclusions of Riley and Freeman?
Stay tuned tomorrow for perspectives that argue that Black History Month is still necessary.
After that, I’ll finally share my own views on this vital issue.
Stay tuned . . .
1 comment:
I believe that Black History month is still a necessity. Until Black History is embedded into the overall content of our US History books, not as a seperate chapter, but within the overall fabric of the book, it will remain necessary to keep Black History month as it is. While I agree that Black History is American History, until it is included as such, the need still remains. It is not my intent to be exclusive or seperatist in any way, it is just important for our children and grandchildren to know and understand the contributions made by people of color throughout the history of this nation whether Native American, Asian, Hispanic or African American - all people should be recognized for how we as a people (American) people have forged together to make this nation what it is. Therefore, our history books should be inclusive to paint the picture as it truly is, not as it is portrayed from only one vantage point with sprinklings here and there reflecting only minimal contributions from people of color.
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