The Future of Black History

Black History Month a celebration of Black history each February is always an exciting moment in the annual calendar For many Black people it is both a welcome spotlight on Black achievement and a source of dark humor Because of course Black History Month would be the shortest and often coldest month of the year This seemed like a bitter irony with such a deep rich history and general aversion to the cold But still we persistCorporations primarily view Black History Month as an easy and often only entry point that allows them quotto engage with Blacknessquot This socalled engagement does nothing to confront systemic and structural racism Similar to Martin Luther King Day in January Black History Month can provide cover for organizations unwilling to interrogate how they continue to perpetuate inequalityBlack History Month is readymade to be coopted by brands that prefer sloganeering to meaningful work It is the month during which they hope their empty promises are made temporarily palpable Powered interest like their activism more quotI Have a Dreamquot rather than quotLetter in a Birmingham Jailquot Knowing this has not dimmed Black peopleamp8217s enthusiasm We embrace that Black History Month is not about how other people feel Black History is for and about us Black history is the futureWhen scholar Carter G Woodson launched Negro History Week in 1926 he sowed the seeds of what would flourish to the modernday Black History Month In the same way Woodson never intended for Black history to confine itself to a week it can39t be limited to a month For that matter Black history is not strictly history as Blackness is continually growing changing and making itself new Nor is Black history distinct from American history despite efforts to make them separableAny honest story of American history must include the struggle contribution and redemptive journey of Black people One might question how and why they are perceived as separate stories at all The ongoing saga of Blackness both past and present holds a mirror to the American consciousness and asks that it interrogate its values and meaning This story provides a roadmap for an inclusive and justicebased future for this countryThe socalled racial reckoning in the face of George Floyd39s murder has been met with the inevitable backlash of white grievance Opponents of progress have focused their vitriol on imaginary foes such as woke culture and critical race theory From Reconstruction to now this is a formula as old as America itself Rather than commit to an inclusive future the default falls to fearmongering and when that fails outright terrorIn light of this pushback what is the responsibility of the advertisingmarketing industry What canshould these selfanointed storytellers do when this moment calls for leadership Is it possible for an industry that is straddled with its baggage and failures to adequately address racial inequity in societyThe advertising industry has mastered the art of rhetoric without action and advocacy without activism Last year I warned that rhetoric would not save the industry from the growing pressure to address systemic racism within its ranks The industry suffers from a quot239squot crisis Too many influential people doing too little for too long Black History Month is an opportunity to do more than reverse course This is an opportunity to break from this past and move into a newly imagined futureThat future will be powered by Blackness39 creativity innovation and cultural resonance Embracing African Americans and our cultural perspective rather than coopting I am looking at your Juneteenth is a meaningful way to build solidarity with creators and their audience We need to create an institutional culture where Black talent can thrive and Black voices are not just heard but heralded For all the industry39s lauded creative prowess and powers of persuasion is any of it in service to what truly matters The industry is mainly silent and that silence is deafeningSo as we embark on another Black History Month our vision must be in lockstep with the way Black people have always survived in America by looking to the future I hope the advertisingmarketing industry takes this moment to step upClick the social buttons to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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The Future of Black History

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Philip McKenzie

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The Future of Black History

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