There’s a fairly old joke among Black folks that says we were given February to celebrate our heritage because it’s the shortest month of the year. Meaning, of course, that’s about as much as we could expect.
I often consider the juxtaposition of Black History Month and St. Valentine’s Day. When I think about the ill-mended and broken hearts of Black folks through slavery, sharecropping, Civil Rights, and now, I think February is oddly appropriate; there is St. Valentine’s Day on the 14th, the day of love and relationship, and there’s Black History Month for twenty-eight days. For me, February reflects the unspoken, complex relationship America tends to have with Black people, an imbalance of love and aversion which reflects America’s own imbalanced relationship with itself. This month transform. is focusing on both relationship–especially our relationship with ourselves–and Black History Month.
This month also celebrate: LGBT History Month (UK), Independence of Sri Lanka & Dominican Republic (Feb 4 & Feb 27), and in the Philippines, People Power Revolution (Feb 25).
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