I'LL MAKE ME A WORLD

Black history has always been political.

Givens, a Harvard scholar and author (Fugitive Pedagogy: Carter G. Woodson and the Art of Black Teaching, 2021), chronicles the 100-year history of Black History Month in his latest book. Initiated by educator and historian Woodson as Negro History Week in 1926, this February celebration grew into Black History Month in 1976 with a proclamation signed by President Gerald Ford. Givens traces the path of the month from its grassroots origins to its now-indelible position in American culture. In vivid prose that’s enlivened by personal reflections, Givens examines how, beginning generations ago, teachers, librarians, writers, and archivists pieced together limited resources to preserve the Black past and offer critical counternarratives to the celebratory nature of U.S. history. The author draws on archival documents, speeches, plays, and other ephemera to demonstrate how engagement with the past was a critical part of the African American experience. Givens rightly emphasizes that those working to keep Black history alive have long been animated by a spirit of protest. “Recognizing the severe limitations of the dominant historical knowledge,” he writes, “African Americans created what the late historian Charles H. Wesley called a ‘heroic tradition’ of remembering history: They insisted on giving a black account of the past, even when their interpretations, additions, and reconstructions of the past conflicted with those of people in positions of power; even when such knowledge of the past was deemed seditious by white Americans.” As Givens notes, Black History Month is now celebrated around the world, from Latin America to Europe. He writes, “Gaining knowledge about the black past has been a contested activity for black people everywhere.” New challenges and opportunities await us. Givens writes, “In an era of unprecedented access to information through technology and widespread competition for young people’s attention, there is a continued need for tailored and immersive engagement in black memory work.” There is much history still to learn.

A necessary and urgent account for this current moment.