Every February, the US honors the contributions and sacrifices of African Americans who have helped shape the nation. Black History Month celebrates the rich cultural heritage, triumphs and adversities that are an indelible part of our country's history.

Critics have long argued that Black history should be taught and celebrated year-round, not just during one month each year. It was Carter G. Woodson, the "father of Black History," who first set out in 1926 to designate a time to promote and educate people about Black history and culture. The idea wasn't to place limitations but to focus and broaden the nation's consciousness.

Carter Woodson was an American historian, author, journalist, and the founder of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. He was one of the first scholars to study the history of the African diaspora. Woodson envisioned a week-long celebration to encourage the coordinated teaching of Black history in public schools.

He designated the second week of February as Negro History Week. February was chosen because the second week of the month coincides with the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, so it was traditionally a time when African Americans would hold celebrations in honor of emancipation.

President Gerald Ford officially recognized Black History Month during the country's 1976 bicentennial. Ford called upon Americans to "seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history." Forty years after Ford formally recognized Black History Month Barack Obama, the nation's first Black president, delivered a message from the White House, a place built by enslaved people:

"Black History Month shouldn't be treated as though it is somehow separate from our collective American history or somehow just boiled down to a compilation of greatest hits from the March on Washington or from some of our sports heroes...It's about the lived, shared experience of all African Americans, high and low, famous and obscure, and how those experiences have shaped and challenged and ultimately strengthened America." 

Excerpted from an essay on NPR.org by Jonathan Franklin in 2022.

Photo: Carter G. Woodson, Bettmann Archive