In Celebration Of Black History Month, Part 2

Revisiting Black History

Most people know that February is the month that we celebrate Black history. They also know that it is a month that has enormous significance in Black American history. What they may not know is why the month of February was chosen. February was selected by Carter Goodwin Woodson, a noted historian, publisher and pioneer in American Black history. Woodson was born to parents who were former slaves. He spent his early childhood working in the Kentucky coal mines and enrolled in high school at age 20. He graduated within two years and later went on to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard. As an accomplished scholar he was disturbed to find in his studies that history books largely ignored the Black American population -- and when blacks did figure into the picture, it was generally in ways that reflected the inferior social position they were assigned at the time.

Woodson selected February for several reasons. First it is in celebration of two historical figures who had a great impact on the Black population: Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. Other noteworthy reasons the month of February is significant are:

• W.E.B. Dubois, who was born on February 23, 1868, was a Civil Rights leader and co-founder of the NAACP ((National Association for the Advancement of Colored People).
• The 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution was passed on February 3, 1870, giving Blacks the right to vote.
• The first Black senator, Hiriam R. Revels, took office on February 25, 1870.
• The NAACP was founded in New York City of February 12, 1909.
• Malcolm X, the fiery militant leader who promoted Black Nationalism, was shot and killed by Black Muslims on February 21, 1965.

As you know, today we live in a culture of instant gratification, where the attributes of patience and determination are often hard to find. While the spirit behind all those terms is still appropriate in 2007, the buzzwords conservatism and rugged individualism have taken on new meaning. While black is still and always will be beautiful to some, being black alone no longer puts bread on the table or gas in the tank. And gas, in particular, has risen to the point where it is forcing some in our communities to have to make ugly choices between feeding the car or feeding their families.

An Historic Safer Reality

America today continues to be a conservative land whose people are preoccupied with safety, growth and economic stability, more selfishly perhaps than at any time in the last few years. There is nothing wrong with that except, realistically, individual and corporate gains are coming at the expense of the downtrodden, poor and have-nots -- groups whose major constituencies are America's minorities. Many of these minorities are African Americans with little or no hope. So just to maintain our current status quo, we must combine our efforts on a national basis.

But in spite of the many ongoing problems African Americans face, there is hope. There has been progress. Record numbers of Black Americans have entered the suburban middle class. Some have risen much higher; Several of the nation's biggest and richest companies -- Time Warner, Merrill Lynch, American Express -- are run by African Americans. The most powerful woman in television, Oprah Winfrey, is black. The Secretary of State is a black conservative. In the Super Bowl this year, for the first time, the coaches of both teams were African Americans.

Another such symbol of that progress is the recent election of Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick. Patrick swept into office as the state's 71st governor, and after a richly symbolic inaugural ceremony in which he asked citizens to join a "common cause of social reform that will reach from the corner office to the corner of your block," he made history. As part of his inauguration speech he said, "My journey here has been an improbable one. From a place where hope withers, through great schools and challenging opportunities, to this solemn occasion, I have been supported and loved and lifted up." Patrick took office as America's second elected African-American governor, after Virginia's Douglas Wilder. His swearing in came on the 165th anniversary of the pleadings made to John Quincy Adams by an African man, who, along with 36 others, commandeered the slave ship Amistad as he and his compatriots were being forcibly brought to America. Upon winning the slave ship captives their freedom in a pivotal Supreme Court battle, Adams, the son of John Adams, was presented with the Mendi Bible, on which Patrick laid his hand and repeated his oath.

And while we pause to recognize and honor these historic moments, we must temper our own optimism with a measure of concern.

The reasons for this optimism can no longer be merely a mouthed sentiment. They cannot dismantle what political expedience and racial prejudice have erected. We must cast our buckets down here and now to stay in step, or else we will find ourselves in an 11th-hour situation of having to come together in order to play catch up.

As we celebrate February -- Black Music Month 2007 -- one of the goals and obligations those of us who are a position of influence have is to work to better educate and assist those who seek career opportunities in radio and music and to help those already established in the field to reach higher levels of success. This is true empowerment.

Black History Month is also a time when those of us in radio need to recognize our responsibilities and take full advantage of our tremendous reach and influence and combine that with forward vision. Today, in 2007, it's not just about race, levels of income or stature, it's also about self-help -- self-help in which the energy of the black middle class is channeled into a struggle against "the enemy within," specifically against the dysfunctional behavior that continues to plague African-American communities who encompass a large majority of our listeners. If we truly understand this and act on it, our lives will become more meaningful and our listeners better informed.

Word.