February marks the beginning of Black History Month — an annual observance that recognizes African American achievements and functions as a time to recognize their central role in U.S. history, both past and present. It’s also a renewed opportunity to reflect on continuing struggles for racial justice and equality. However, some white people still find themselves tiptoeing around the topic and asking “but how can I celebrate Black History Month?”
If you’re white and reading this, maybe you don’t know how to act because you’re worried you aren’t educated enough to speak out. Maybe you’re fearful of overstepping your place and doing more harm than good. Maybe you’re coming to terms with prejudices you didn’t realize you had or mistakes you’ve made in the past. Maybe you are feeling weighed down by a sense of guilt.
But white guilt doesn’t make a change — actions do.
This is most definitely not an exhaustive list, but here are a few ways you can get started and find direction if you’re struggling to decide where to go from here.
- Remember That Black History Is Everyone’s History
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Unfortunately, centuries of systemic racism rooted in our culture and school systems have perpetuated the idea that Black history — and any other minority history for that matter — is an elective and white history is the core curriculum. Black history is so much more than slavery and the Civil Rights Movement — it’s also Phyllis Wheatley waging war with her words as a Patriot poet, Dr. Daniel Hale Williams who performed the first-ever successful open heart surgery, and so many more.
While Black History Month is a wonderful opportunity for celebrating Black excellence and acknowledging these often forgotten accomplishments, as well as reviving the spirit of combatting racial injustices, the idea certainly is not that all this momentum should fizzle out come March 1st. We should carry it with us year-round, and we can start by educating ourselves.
- Educate Yourself
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One of the best ways to find direction when looking for a place to start is to read and do your research. Black individuals should not have to feel responsible for educating their white friends about racism. While it’s okay to want to know more, there are tons upon tons of resources out there that can provide answers to any possible question you might have. One that I’ve found particularly helpful is the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s “Resources for White Allies” page, which consists of a comprehensive master list of informational resources and other media.
- Amplify Black Voices
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Learning to amplify Black voices is also learning how to listen to Black voices. While Black History is not for you specifically, that’s not an excuse to do nothing — it gives you an opportunity to listen. Listen with a sense of empathy. Enter conversations with the hope to learn something new, not to defend yourself. As Austin Cross says in his article, “What It Really Means To Amplify Black Voices,” “[give] their voices the same respect we’ve historically given to the police.”
Black Americans are also deprived of access to professional resources and the networking privileges that white Americans take for granted, which is why you can also amplify Black voices in culture and business by supporting Black artists, writers and business owners.
- See The Black Community As Individuals
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Black Americans are united by a unique shared cultural and historical experience, but it is important that you also recognize that the Black community is not one homogeneous group. There are many Black women and Black members of the LGBTQ community who experience multiple forms of marginalization through combinations of sexism and homophobia as well.
It’s also important to remember that there are individual people within these groups, creative and intelligent souls with unique stories and experiences and passions in painting, astronomy or anime. Telling a single story to represent an entire group of people falls short of appreciating the quality and dignity of the individual human life.
- Keep Growing
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The simple fact is that drastic change within yourself is not something you will experience overnight. Chances are, you are going to fall short of your goals a few times; however, if you continue to educate yourself and make an effort to grow, then you will see more successes than failures.
Celebrating Black History as a white person means honoring and appreciating past Black achievements as well as continuing efforts to amplify Black voices and strengthen allyship. There are many different ways to go about doing this: signing petitions, pushing for political reformation, protesting or having hard conversations with friends and family. You may not know where you fit in the picture, but here’s a way to start.