Black History month 2019

Posted 2/14/19

America celebrates African American History during the month of February, an observance which actually dates back to 1925, when Harvard-trained historian, Carter G. Woodson founded, the Association …

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Black History month 2019

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America celebrates African American History during the month of February, an observance which actually dates back to 1925, when Harvard-trained historian, Carter G. Woodson founded, the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), and conceived and announced Negro History Week. The event was first celebrated during a week in February 1926 that encompassed the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass.

This year marks the centennial of the birth of Jackie Robinson, who broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier in 1947. Robinson was born on Jan. 31, 1919. A new photography exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York gives a broad perspective of his life on and off the field.

There are also a number of events planned locally to mark Black History Month, including a month of art exhibits and programs at the Newburgh Free Library. Included among them is a lecture by Vassar Professor Eve Dunbar on Afrofuturism, a literary and artistic movement that explores the future while incorporating black history and culture. Learn about Afrofutirism and the history of Black Science Fiction on Thurs., Feb. 21 at 6:30 p.m. The Hudson Valley, rich in American History, played a significant role in the events that led to this commemoration. Sojourner Truth (1797- 1883) was born into slavery in what is now the Ulster County town of Espous. She escaped to freedom with her infant daughter and later sued to win her son’s freedom. She became the first black woman to win such a case against a white man. The abolitionist Frederick Douglass (1818-1895), whom President Lincoln considered to be a friend, spoke at Washington’s Headquarters in 1869.

Black history has different meaning for Americans, depending on their side of the struggle. African Americans commemorate the rise from slavery and oppression and the fight for equality. While we remain a work in progress as a nation, there is evidence to suggest that racism still exists today.

White America may look at this history with a sense of guilt over atrocities and social injustice. As with any of the dubious moments from the past, like the Massacre at Wounded Knee, the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II, or the Stonewall riot, history cannot be undone, it can only be remembered.

And we can move forward. We can overcome divisiveness and the notion that some of us are “different” and therefore inferior. We can learn to embrace all of our brothers and sisters