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“Why Isn’t There a White History Month?”
How I became aware of my own racial identity in high school
In the United States, the month of February is recognized as Black History Month. In addition to Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday in January, we take February to focus specifically on the achievements of African Americans throughout our history. It’s a time to spotlight such heroes as Dr. King, Rosa Parks, Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Jackie Robinson, President Barack Obama, and so many more.
It’s no secret that the United States has a disgusting history regarding race. From the start of our country with slavery to segregation and Jim Crow laws to mass incarceration and voter suppression. The fight for racial equality goes on, today.
This gets to my own personal story about black history month. I went to public schools in the city of Buffalo, NY growing up. I managed to get into a fairly good high school and every year, we had a black history program in February. Like most programs or assemblies, I don’t remember a ton from them. I recall the drill team performing, some poetry readings, and other performances and speeches by teachers and students.
There is one thing that will forever stick in my mind, however. Each year, on the day of the program, there were mass absences among the white students. I didn’t think much of it my freshman year but by the time my junior year rolled around, I had become aware of what was going on. These students couldn’t be bothered to come to school to celebrate black history and apparently, their parents were just fine with that. As matter of a fact, the adults probably held some negative views towards African Americans and other races.
American history, as a whole, cannot be understood without first understanding black history.
I didn’t attend a suburban or rural school with mostly white students. I went to the most diverse high school, probably in all of western New York. The diversity of the school carries on today. With such a student body, you wouldn’t expect this kind of behavior from the white students but year after year — same result.
