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If only we didn't need Black History Month

Greg Dewar
The Commuter

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

History is a comical thing. Some people live for it. Others can’t stand it. And very rarely, someone embraces it while moving forward in their lives.

Some are trapped by it, ravenously escaping their pasts, allowing that past to redefine them completely.

Others, the anachronisms like myself, are in such love with history it’s all we can do but to wish to be transported to an older time.

Idealistically, we like to believe that history is so terribly important because it teaches us not to repeat the same mistakes we’ve already made, and as the layman, you or I may give this a wholehearted cheer. The issue with this is that lawmakers and the people with real power in our society are historically retarded. In other terms, they seem hellbent on repeating the mistakes of the past in a chronological sequence.

What I find most quizzical is that we have to have a “Black History Month” to remember certain parts of our American history. Parts that may have been easily swept under the rug. Shouldn’t we, as a forward-thinking country with a relatively high education quotient, simply appreciate history intrinsically? Instead of being told that during a certain 28-day period that it’s time to remember people? That fact is a self-explanatory political commentary in and of itself.

It’s a little saddening. From my small tower, I would think all people would know and appreciate all history regardless of what skin color it’s related to, and I wish I could say people were just ignoring one part of history, but that simply isn’t true. From my perspective, for the average American citizen history was just a boring class you slept through in high school and nothing more.

There shouldn’t have to be a black history month; we shouldn’t have to encourage people to learn about history. Black history should be considered every bit as important as every other “history,” as I’m even loathe to divide up history (I’m cringing as I write this), because how do you divide up something that is completely singular and say “Well, this piece belongs to you and this piece belongs to these people who don’t look like you.” In what sort of world does this make sense?

It seems like even further segregation, to have this black history month. Like the historical racism of the past is being carried forward through this sheepskin cloak and continuing its vileness. Does this mean that black people are intrinsically special? That they deserve their own history month where other people don’t? Without being a racist, these seem like valid questions that need to be asked, and maybe they already have, but I’m still wondering…

Why can’t history just be history? Why can’t history just belong to everyone? Why can’t we as a species appreciate all of our history equally? Why do we need a calendar date to point at other people and go “this is your month”? What is so broken in our society that this need has been created? That a group of people has seen fit to designate a month to a skin color?

Why can’t we just have a history month. A month where we celebrate all history. The good and the bad, regardless of culture, heritage, skin color, sexual orientation or religion. Why can’t we just come together as a melting pot of people and remember everything?

History tells the most beautiful story of all, regardless of how tragic, because it is truth. The week before last I talked about our codified human emotions, and our ability to empathize. Now I talk to you about our codified history. That history belongs to everyone with our genome and is overarching. This is the history of all nations and nationalities. Nothing is more important than anything else.

If history as a singular entity has taught me anything, it’s to always cherish the fact that we are only one human race and that we only have one shared history. Through the hourglass, time’s arrow is the great equalizer: it isn’t black, it isn’t white; history is often gray, like the American people. Or any people for that matter. If only humanity could realize that possession and use it for greater unification.

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