It’s time to bring more humanity to Black History Month

Each February I prepare myself for an onslaught of one-dimensional facts about Black people: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave the “I Have a Dream” speech during the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Harriet Tubman led enslaved people out of bondage. Six-year-old Ruby Bridges helped desegregate public schools.

These are facts every American should know. But so much of the narrative is missing: King was the most hated man in America. Tubman ran from her enslaver because he planned to sell her away from her husband. Both of Bridges’ parents lost their jobs after Ruby integrated Louisiana’s William Frantz Elementary School. Bridges is just 67 years old.

My parents are only in their 70s. This is recent history.

It is with good intentions we recite the accomplishments of Black Americans in February. When scholar Carter G. Woodson established Negro History Week in 1926, he wanted Black folk to celebrate our accomplishments.

Yet in the 46 years since Gerald Ford officially recognized Black History Month at America’s bicentennial, February has become the month filled with Black history sound bites and statistics. In 1941, Charles Drew discovered blood plasma and developed the Red Cross’ first large-scale blood bank, but Black people weren’t allowed to donate blood until 1942, and it was only used in segregated blood banks until 1950.

Without context, America’s sins against Black Americans’ humanity continues to go unacknowledged. History that is never fully acknowledged can never be truly understood.

The more we try to show a 360-degree picture of Black life in America — the impact of slavery, the persistence of discrimination, and the erasure of our humanity — the more we face resistance. The “I Have a Dream” speech is one of America’s most important oratory moments, but does that mean the people who put King on the FBI’s Most Wanted list don’t matter? When teachers try to contextualize how systemic racism shapes public policy in housing, education, entertainment, retail, and sports, their efforts are disparaged as anti-American and their jobs are threatened. Ironically, that proves the case for critical race theory.

» READ MORE: 13 museums and cultural landmarks that showcase Black history in Philadelphia

Nikole Hannah-Jones’ The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story, the bestseller adapted from The New York Times series that illustrates how America’s slave-based economy profited from the dehumanization of Black people, is among several books including Toni Morrison’s Beloved, Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States, and Isabel Wilkerson’s Caste: The Origin of Our Discontents, conservative politicians are actively seeking to ban in schools and libraries.

These books provide full and nuanced contexts about lives and experiences of African Americans in the United States. America’s triumphs and transgressions are laid bare. Black achievements, like Thurgood Marshall becoming the first African American Supreme Court justice, are documented. And the people who wrote and upheld the racist practices and policies are held to task.

“In order to engage with the strength of my ancestors, you have to engage with the role your ancestors played in dehumanizing us,” said Tracey Michaél Lewis-Giggetts, author of Black Joy: Stories of Resistance, Resilience and Restoration, released by Simon & Schuster the first day of February. “If we want to truly celebrate history, we have to look at Black people as whole human beings with whole lives.”

Television, books, and movies are stepping in where politicians and educators drop the ball on providing the context that fosters Black humanity. In the last year, series like OWN’s Queen Sugar and ABC’s The Wonder Years have examined how Black families survive in their worlds that are teeming with systemic racism. In Queen Sugar, Ava DuVernay tells the story of a family of contemporary Black farmers who are in constant danger of losing their land because of racist laws. The Wonder Years is a Black preteen’s coming of age story set in 1968 Montgomery, Ala. Racism is a part of their lives, but we see this family having dinner together, going on dates, and coaching youngsters in baseball.

Abbott Elementary, anr ABC sitcom starring West Philadelphia’s Quinta Brunson, is an honest look at the Philadelphia public school system, showing how teachers manage in a school system that has been systemically neglected because its students are predominately Black.

» READ MORE: ‘Abbott Elementary’ is full of Philly references. Here’s a list of all of them.

The Sex and the City reboot, And Just Like That is giving its Black characters Lisa Todd Wexley (Nicole Ari Parker) and Nya Wallace (Karen Pittman) relatable story lines. Nya’s infertility struggles are real, as some studies show that Black women are 1.5 times more likely to experience infertility issues than women of other races.

“Lisa Todd Wexley, and her husband, Herbert, challenge stereotypes today,” wrote Keli Goff in an email, one of the series’ cowriters. Lisa is a documentary filmmaker and her husband, Herbert, is a hedge fund banker. The couple are avid art collectors. “And perhaps may shift the image of the Black family in the eyes of some of our viewers. In fact, based on some of the notes I’ve gotten, I know it has.”

» READ MORE: ‘And Just Like That...’ on HBO Max is refreshingly honest and messy

Lewis-Giggetts admits that being totally frank about history can get messy. During the civil rights movement, it was dangerous for Black people to talk candidly about race and show our true feelings, because white America could choose to ignore us or beat us. Our demands for voting rights were weaponized against us, so we had no choice but to present as upstanding, God-fearing, and respectable.

“There was this perceived notion that if we acted a certain way, we were protected and safe,” Lewis-Giggetts said. “But we know by now, it didn’t truly keep us safe.”

What will keep Black people safe is seeing us — all of us — as humans in our schools, in our courtrooms, in our workplaces, and in our neighborhoods. Everyone should want to learn about the accomplishments of Black people who contributed to the American story. But we need to do more.

This February learn everything you can about Black heroes, their lives, their families, and their accomplishments in spite of a world of systemic racism. In this way, celebrating Black history won’t seem disingenuous, performative, or confined to just one month, but an American way of life.