Unit 4: The Secret Road to Freedom (1ère Générale)

 (At the follwing of what we did last time)

At first, the week was called “Negro History Week” in 1926. Woodson’s first goal was to prove to white Americans that black people have played important roles in the creation of America. Secondly, the aim was to increase the visibility of black life and history at a time when the black community was portrayed very badly in the mainstream media (with racist imagery…).

In 1976, some black activists mobilized to establish a Black History Month. Therefore, President G. Ford made the first proclamation for this event. Then in 1986, Congress officially recognized Black History Month. Since then, ever president has proclaimed a theme annually except for Trump.

Nowadays, the event is controversial because some white people are calling out for a “White History Month”, or even a “Confederate History Month”. Moreover, some other people think that Black History Month is useless, and it goes against American values.

To conclude, it is surprising to learn that in some states they do net mention it at all. Furthermore, teaching Black History is not mandatory in the national curriculum. On top of that, less than 9% of history class is dedicated to Black History. To finish with, Black history is still a sensitive subject in the USA.  

Homework: Learn the lesson.