We need Black History Month

In the face of Michael Richards’s startling racial tirades, we need to view this as an opportunity to begin dialoguing about the ails of our broken society. We need to view this as a harbinger of the racial disharmony that continues to divide this country. I once heard that “what you pay attention to grows stronger” and, in this case, we must pay attention to our true feelings about race within our families and local communities.

In this attention-deficit, disordered world, we need to focus our awareness, on respecting each other by continually commemorating one another‚Äôs long legacies and continuous contributions to modern society. We need to understand that Black History Month is not just about Black history.  It is about American History within the context of African-American contributions to the U.S. population.

I grew up as part of the middle class in Haiti (contrary to popular beliefs, there are more than just the poor and the poorer in Haiti).  My mother and I lived in an inherited house left to her by my grandparents.  My father was a property owner, avid businessman and entrepreneur, who divided his time between living in the U.S. and Haiti for business purposes. However, when our economic situation began to plummet, my father attained a five-year visa for me to come to the U.S. as a tourist in 1984.

Today, I am a published poet (just published my first poetry collection with Warbler Books, aptly titled “Sparks in the Dark: A Lighter Shade of Blue”), a freelance writer, columnist, producer and host of my own television show, “Dream Weavers” at Cambridge Community Television.

Similarly, civil rights pioneers who came before me also overcame the scourge of racism and oppression to achieve personal success.  Men throughout history like Frederick Douglas, who rose up from the roots of slavery to become dedicated, self-educated academics, political leaders and advisers to the president, have continually proven that it can be done!

Today, during Black History Month, we are celebrating the courage and resiliency of the prophets who became martyrs because of their prophecy; namely Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, who eloquently stated, “the hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood.”

In Paul Farmer‚Äôs book, ‚ÄúThe Uses of Haiti‚Äù English historian E.P. Thompson purports that ‚Äúisolated within intellectual enclaves, the drama of ‚Äòtheoretical practice‚Äô may become a substitute for more difficult practical engagements.‚Äù  In other words, we often fall into the trap of spending most of our time talking about what is wrong with the world and little time doing anything about it, particularly when it comes to injustices in Third World countries like Haiti!

Dr. Carolyn L. Turk, an African-American woman and the deputy superintendent of Cambridge public schools stated, ‚Äúthese celebrations are needed and should continue, but I am also a strong advocate for the contributions of African Americans to be recognized throughout the year, across content areas and to be inclusive of local community history.  Knowledge of our past helps connect us to our present and provides hope for the future, if we are to continue to build on the legacies of those who came before us.‚Äù

Shani Fletcher of Teen Voices Magazine said, “quite literally, Black people built this country, and our communities’ contributions are a major part of its culture.”

Leroy Cragwell, chair of the Cambridge African American Heritage Trail Committee, simply wanted the Cambridge community to do one thing in honor of Black History Month. “Support our old, new Mayor Ken Reeves.”

The fundamental nature of Black History Month, based on this spectrum of perspectives, is to respect and celebrate variety and inclusiveness of all people, build on the prophetic and heroic legacies of our ancestors who fought for our freedoms today, recognize that Black History Month is essentially American history despite racial diversity, acknowledge and honor the contributions of African-Americans, advocate for change in our public schools to include more Black history in their curricula, and lastly, support local heroes like Cambridge Mayor Ken Reves!