Well yet another Black History month has drawnto a close with about as much fanfare as I heard about Women’s History Month. I had a brief conversation with my 8yo nephew this past weekend and asked him about what he was learning in school this month. (He attends the same elementary school I once attended and my once 5th grade teacher is now the principal and is a strong, beautiful, brilliant black woman) As soon as the words went out of my mouth I wanted to draw them back in because I knew I didn’t really want to hear the answer. He went on to tell me about Rosa Parks and… Martin Luther King…
While reading the AJC (I really do miss the Washington Post and every time I visit the AJC website it becomes even more apparent) but anyway I digress… while reading the AJC several times this month I saw article after article on Martin Luther King… Martin Luther King Streets… the multimillion dollar Martin Luther King papers…
While visiting Victory church a few weeks ago, the pastor mentioned a black history trip for the youth of the congregation. They were taking a one day bus trip to Montgomery to visit where “Martin and Rosa started the movement” ...
While reading the AJC (I really do miss the Washington Post and every time I visit the AJC website it becomes even more apparent) but anyway I digress… while reading the AJC several times this month I saw article after article on Martin Luther King… Martin Luther King Streets… the multimillion dollar Martin Luther King papers…
While visiting Victory church a few weeks ago, the pastor mentioned a black history trip for the youth of the congregation. They were taking a one day bus trip to Montgomery to visit where “Martin and Rosa started the movement” ...
Attention Attention my fellow Americans!!!
BLACK HISTORY IS MORE THAN MARTIN LUTHER KING JR While I honor and appreciate the achievements and the struggle of Dr. King I am so tired of hearing of him as the source of all of our "rich" Black History. I guess working a few blocks from the King Center, Ebenezer Baptist Church, and Historic Auburn Avenue doesn't help much either. You can add Rosa, Medgar, brother Malcom to that list as well. Our history didn’t begin or end with these noble people. And it is time that we make household names of
L Douglas Wilder and Deval Patrick
The First and Second Elected Black U.S. Governors
Ralph J. Bunche
The First Black Nobel Peace Prize Winner
The First and Second Elected Black U.S. Governors
Ralph J. Bunche
The First Black Nobel Peace Prize Winner
(yep someone won before MLK... imagine that)
Guion Bluford
The First Black Astronaut to fly in Space
Julian Bond
Chairman of the NAACP
Toussaint L’Ouverture
Led Haiti to being the First Black Republic
Oprah Winfrey
The First Black Woman Television host and 2nd Black Billionaire
(you know damn well I wasn’t gonna let this slide without mentioning my girl)
Tiger Woods
The First Black National Golf Champion
Guion Bluford
The First Black Astronaut to fly in Space
Julian Bond
Chairman of the NAACP
Toussaint L’Ouverture
Led Haiti to being the First Black Republic
Oprah Winfrey
The First Black Woman Television host and 2nd Black Billionaire
(you know damn well I wasn’t gonna let this slide without mentioning my girl)
Tiger Woods
The First Black National Golf Champion
(although it happened in GA... nope it wasn't MLK either!!)
5 comments:
ooo how u really feel?
but i agree now that i think about it every poster or commercial is always refrenced to MLK during black history month.
True...the life and accomplishments of other prominent and important figures in Black history need to be mentioned, but what's scarier is that (in NYC at least) we didn't hear much about Black History Month - not even good 'ole Marty. So you see, careful what we wish for...sometimes in our effort to include others and push some aside those in power seize the opportunity to push those figures aside without replacing them with anything. Go figure...
it is funny - it really does feel like black history month never happened. PBS didnt even seem to show all the specials.
Sometimes I feel like such a DC snob, but everytime I go to AJC.com, I'm like WTF?! Washingtonpost.com really is where it's at for mainstream media news.
Which momth was Black History Month? Do they still do that?
Thanks for your post. You're right. If we didn't know any better--and most of us don't--you would think that it was all about MLK.
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