February is designated as Black History Month every year. For many people, it signifies the celebration and pride for the cultural and societal achievements of African Americans. 

Unfortunately, it is evident that black history is often overlooked, misinterpreted, and ignored. It has always been immensely important to understand the history of black America, and even more now during a time in which the Black Lives Matter movement is prevalent. 

The African American Culture Club at Parkland High School has shared their insights on what Black History Month is and why the message of the month is significant.

Club Member Victoria Jeannot (pictured on the bottom right) described what Black History Month means to her. “It means a time of celebration and peace,” she stated, “it’s really just celebrating who we are and understanding everything and learning information.” 

Victoria also explained how centralized the month can be on the accomplishments of a few people that it fails to encompass the accomplishments of the entire community and its significant impact on modern life.

“What’s the most important thing to me is learning about black people who created and impacted society outside of learning about the same three people,” she explained.

Another member of the club, Makaylin Valley (pictured middle left), added to Victoria’s point by saying, “I think that as we get older, it has become repetitive,” she continues, “from personal experience, I have learned about the same five people every year.”

Makaylin also pointed out another source of redundancy during this month

“I find that the month can almost make people feel like we have to focus on black issues only in February and not the rest of the year,” she says, “of course I love the month, but I wish that it wasn’t so centralised in the month of February.”

It’s important for all people to learn about black history and its impact on society. Club Member Demi Olatilo (pictured top right) summarized the information that she feels is most important to be educated about. 

“I think that it is important for people to remember that black history is American history and it’s really not just one month but black people are a large part of that history and continue to be major contributors to it,” she explained.

Melanie Lowe, another club member (pictured top left), added to Demi’s explanation by stating what she believes is also important to understand about black history. 

“I think not only is it indicating of the impact of black culture but also teaching people about other cultures other than the ones that they’re immediately exposed to,” she continues, “teaching and learning about the history broadens your perspective about how you as a person relate to the world, and that we are not so separate. All cultures have their own integrities and aspects, but in one way or another they bleed into others and make us what we are as a whole.” 

Club Member Alanna Moli (pictured bottom left) explained how people can support black history month and its community. 

“I think we focus a lot on doing things that are big, but I think that racism and prejudice is on a small scale, so when it is immediate you should speak up about it,” she said, “It’s also important to work on educating yourself.”

Makaylin supported Alanna’s statement by saying, “I think a lot of people think that making a difference has to be a super huge thing, and if you can’t impact people on a huge scale it is not worth the effort at all,” she explains.

“But especially during black history month, if you say you’re an ally or you say you support the Black Lives Matter movement, then it has to be more than just posting on social media, you have to recognise the stuff that happens in your classroom or in your home that you see and hear but you don’t talk about. Those are important things that you can start with that may not seem like a big deal, but the impact will go on from the home to a parents work place, or from a classroom to your peers and the rest of the student body,” Makaylin described. 

It is difficult for the club to hold in-person events during the pandemic, but they do encourage students to have discussions with each other about their experiences. Melanie Lowe finalised the discussion by saying, “I think it is important for the school to understand that there are different views. Everybody knows about Black History Month, but I don’t think they understand why it is an important part of our education. It’s an education in our social constructs, more than anything it’s necessary for people to understand how our relationships and cultures make us what we are.”