By Linda Stamato
I wonder how long Black History Month will exist.
How long will we set aside time to reflect on the achievements of our Black citizens? To celebrate the contributions of inventors and professionals, artists, musicians, doctors and nurses, scientists, scholars and teachers? How long will we trace the path of their ancestors from slavery to freedom? How long will we confront the hostility, violence, discrimination, deprivations and hardships they endured?
It was this history that Carter Woodson believed had to be told.
This accomplished historian, author and journalist founded the Association for the Study of African American Life and History in 1915. He was among the first scholars to study the history of the Black African diaspora in the United States. In 1926, he launched Negro History Week, a precursor to what became Black History Month. He yearned to see Black history come alive. He insisted on giving visibility to the achievements of Black Americans without ignoring — or whitewashing — the harsh realities of their lives.
As this effort for visibility and authenticity gained ground, opposing forces gathered strength. They sought to blur or obliterate that history. They promoted an alternative narrative shaped by a preference for a version of history with white supremacy at its core. Those forces gained support from Donald Trump and his MAGA followers. They attempt to rewrite history for their own purposes. In doing so, they often ignore or disparage Black Americans.
This antipathy is evident in the unrelenting attacks on policies and programs designed to offset the enduring setbacks of slavery, segregation and discrimination.
Resentment toward diversity, equity and inclusion — recast by critics as discrimination against white people — has intensified. It fuels grievances among those who feel left out. It also gives bad actors and opportunistic politicians platforms to advance themselves at the expense of their fellow Americans.
Explaining, and at times defending, the values embodied in the phrase Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is not for the faint-hearted. During Black History Month, however, I feel an obligation to speak.
These concepts and initiatives remain widely misunderstood. In some cases, that misunderstanding is intentional. Programs are sometimes awkwardly designed. They are not always appreciated as intended: Legitimate efforts to address past discrimination.
That discrimination included denial of rights, redlining and barriers to credit, home ownership, jobs and schools. The goal was to compensate for wrongs and accelerate opportunities long denied to Black Americans.
These efforts have provoked resistance and ridicule. They have also revealed the persistent shortage of opportunities for Black citizens. They underscore the need for justice and fairness to take center stage.
If special advantages to aid access are no longer permitted through affirmative action or targeted support, so be it. The focus must then shift. We must oppose any efforts to deny access or manipulate circumstances — including voting districts — to block opportunities for Black Americans to engage, compete, thrive and serve the nation.
The fight continues. The federal government and some states are again pursuing measures that limit opportunity. Vehement attacks on D.E.I. barely mask the racist views of some proponents. The scope of these efforts is broader than it appears.
Increasingly, it is clear that those behind the attacks are seeking new ways to restrict the autonomy of people whose ancestors were denied control over their own lives. Yet they are meeting resistance, as descendants of slaves claim their rights, much as their forebears did during Reconstruction.
There was no consensus on what should follow the Civil War. Congress debated readmission of seceded states. Lawmakers clashed over the nature of secession, the conditions for return and the desirability of social reforms. President Lincoln sought reunification. He wanted the nation restored.
Andrew Johnson, Lincoln’s successor, vetoed key legislation. He pardoned Confederate leaders. He allowed Southern states to enact draconian Black Codes restricting the rights of freed slaves. His actions outraged Radical Republicans determined to protect freedmen and punish the South. Johnson survived impeachment but emerged weakened.
In the 1866 midterm elections, Radical Republicans gained majorities in Congress. Reconstruction began. Ulysses Grant was elected president in 1869.
Historians continue to debate Reconstruction’s legacy. Political leaders did restore the union and limit reprisals against the South. Most importantly, they established a constitutional framework for racial equality. The 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments guaranteed freedom, citizenship, due process, equal protection and voting rights.
In the South, African American men voted and held public office for the first time. Sixteen Black Americans served in Congress. More than 600 were elected to state legislatures. Hundreds more held local offices. As History.com notes, their presence marked a profound shift in American democracy.
Greyhound bus station, Rome GA, September 1943. Photo by Esther Bubley. Source: Library of Congress
Still, the South remained determined to maintain racial hierarchy. Reconstruction gave way to Jim Crow laws. Legal protections eroded. Black Americans were systematically disenfranchised.
Part of that assault aimed to increase vulnerability. It sought to render Black citizens invisible, silence their voices and pressure them into submission under the weight of a rogue government.
That was then. It is also now.
Today, invisibility is failing. Powerful forces are restoring attention to stories long suppressed. Films, books, magazines, classrooms and museums finally are giving those histories their due. In Washington, D.C., the National Museum of African American History and Culture stands as a splendid example.
Americans trust museums. Ninety-two percent of adults view them as nonpartisan sources of education, according to Wilkening Consulting. Ninety-six percent say they would support lawmakers who fund museums, and 97 percent see museums as vital educational assets. Caro News reports that museums rank just behind friends and family among the most trusted institutions.
Libraries hold similar standing. Opinion polls consistently rank libraries and museums among the most trusted public institutions. Their credibility rests on independence, as reported by ProPublica and explored by the Pew Research Center.
When free from government interference, these institutions serve as community anchors.
Within these cherished spaces, history is learned. Portraits of talent, determination and grit line the walls and pages. Black Americans who resisted and succeeded against formidable odds inspire those who visit.
Efforts to distort or erase “inconvenient history” — particularly the history of slavery and its enduring legacy — must confront the truth. Museums, libraries, historians and journalists continue to present fact-based, research-driven accounts.
Despite undeniable progress, the uphill fight persists. The impulse to shape America into a narrower, whiter vision remains a constant thorn in the republic’s side. It is a fight that must be won.
All the more reason Black History Month must endure. It offers an opportunity to affirm, again and again, that this nation is strengthened by diversity. America is a multiracial democracy. It is better for being exactly that.
Black History Month provides that opportunity.
WATCH LINDA STAMATO ON NJ PBS ‘STATE OF AFFAIRS’
Linda Stamato is a trustee of the Morristown and Morris Township Library Foundation, and a member of the nonprofit Corporation for New Jersey Local Media. At Rutgers, where she is a Faculty Fellow, she is co-director of the Center for Negotiation and Conflict Resolution at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy. She also is a former commissioner on the Morristown Parking Authority.
Opinions expressed in commentaries are the authors’. They do not necessarily reflect those of this publication.
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Black History Month. History refers to the past not present. Nicki Minaj is alive. Anyway, her net worth is definitely inspiring. 150 million. So glad Chris gave us a peak into his Playlist. I hope we will have more high IQ posts to look forward to. While we are taking about Black living legends anybody read the latest Roxanne Gay?
I personally am enlightened by the arts and culture of musicians and their lyrics. Nicki Minaj and our youth are singing praise.
Here is a chorus if you want to join in song:
Pimpin’ ain’t slick and they ain’t sayin’ nothing
A hundred of ya suckers can’t tell me nothing
I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap
I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap
(Damn), damn, what they say about me?
I don’t know, man, – is on your biscuit
If I get hit, swinging on a big –
I don’t know, man, I’m dippin’ on your whole life
(Damn), damn, what they say about me?
I don’t know, man, – is on your biscuit
If I get hit, swinging on a big –
I don’t know, man, I’m dippin’ on your whole life
Cabrini-Green was known for its safe, laid-back lifestyle and rock bottom crime. 🙂
How is the crime rate in the housing projects?
Here is some local black history:
In 1958 Reginald K. Smith filed a complaint with the State Division Against Discrimination against the owners of the Franklin Manor apartments alleging that they had refused to rent him an apartment because he was a Negro. In 1959 the state found that since the apartments had been built with Federal Housing Administration mortgage insurance, the owners could not discriminate. They never denied the discrimination, but had argued that the law no longer applied because the mortgage had been paid off.
The ruling probably applied to the other three big apartment complexes built in Morristown after WWII—Franklin Village, Park Gardens, and Jacob Ford, but other apartment buildings in Morristown were still free to discriminate until later federal legislation was passed.
It is easy to forget what the past was really like.
As a Southern white now living in NJ, I am super-sensitive to Northeners getting all righteous over race. But that’s not what I see in this article. She’s got it right–our history and, unfortunately, our current situation. I hope she’s right about museums and libraries, but these have also been under attack in the past year by an administration which wants only the pretty parts of our history.
The inability to recognize the simple natural equality of being part of the human race has been filtered by some false sense of a tribal superiority. That view is nothing more than racial tribalism. It often erupts from unwarranted fear of the “other” fueled by ignorance and misinformation.
Luisa, you clearly don’t understand what free speech is. Don’t feel bad – you’re not alone. And to you, free speech is based on the First Amendment. Please visit the Morristown library, Luisa. You can study the Constitution of the United States of America.
You’re welcome!
Bernice is so right; I applaud Linda Stamato for speaking up for the underrepresented, even when she doesn’t have to do it.
And to Jeff, free speech is based on the First Amendment. Please visit the Morristown library, Jeff. You can study the Constitution of the United States of America.
Bernice Proctor Venable, there is no right to free speech here unless you own the site.
Chris is relocating to Mexico?¡Ándale, pues!
DEI: Didn’t Earn It.
First of all the opportunity to express oneself through free speech is a right I sincerely hope we will always have. Linda Stamato’s commentary on Black History Month exemplifies its value.One may or may not agree with all that is said, but the right to opine is a treasure.
Second, honoring Carter G. Woodson is well-deserved. Imagine had he not had the vision to expand awareness of a people’s achievements, so much about them would have been shattered or completely lost. Why then are Woodson’s efforts so important to consider? Heritage and the awareness months, representing the history of so many of our diverse citizenry, i.e., Women, Arab Americans, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, Hispanics and Native American would probably not even exist. Imagine that.
Third, whether or not we accept others’ history, it is there for us to know. Stamato’s aim, I believe, is to focus on all the hard-won achievements of one group gained over time that are now the target of a “gathering storm” to obliterate them. For some it may be a sought-after dream, for others like me, it is an absolute nightmare. Through her discussion, replete with a historical messaging, Stamato is having her say about what is seemingly occurring in an atmosphere of heightened intolerance of others. Hopefully, this will end.
Finally, as a fifth generation descendant of the enslaved and free men, I applaud Linda Stamato for speaking up for the underrepresented, even when she doesn’t have to do it. In effect, she expresses it best in her final statement, “American is a multiracial democracy. It is better for being exactly that.” Agreed.
I am the only person still alive who was a Morris School District member when the MSD was established in the early 70’s. I worked very hard to ensure the MSD gave equal opportunity to Blacks and it did. Not even were black students given opportunity many Blacks became principals of MSD schools. Today I believe the overwhelming majority of US citizens no longer have views that existed in the 70’s and earlier. There will always be some who dislike based on skin color, religion, ethnicity etc., but Blacks, Hispanics, Jews, Asians and others are overwhelmingly treated fairly.
When people smear DEI, I wonder what experience they have really had that tells them white people are being harmed. I have worked with many privileged white people who have gotten their jobs because of that privilege and, those people have been far less qualified than ANY DEI hires I have ever worked with. DEI does not equate to poor quality hires. Shockingly, I guess, there are many VERY QUALIFIED non-whites to hire, even though we have historically tried to keep any non-white from being able to rise and develop their skills. I suggest those of us who are causcasian pay attention to all the privilege we have been graced with, especially if you are a white male, and consider why DEI really bothers us. Linda, thank you for the history lesson. Apparently, some people just don’t want to learn, nor do they want to understand why we are better with diversity.
Can we circle back to the IQ reality. Merit is essential to superior functioning of business. It just is. That is not offensive. Whoever is performing the best in measurable areas, not skin tone, is who shd be running things. Not checking boxes and running businesses into the ground.
For Trump to claim that he was getting rid of diversity, equity, and inclusion was half of the travesty. The other half was when he said he was replacing DEI with “merit.” Hello, members of the Cabinet.
This drivel is absolutely astonishing. To have this world view, so warped and misleading, must be tough to operate and think normally. You would almost think she is paid to post this propaganda level nonsense as satire. Groupthink and thought isolation to the core.
The bubble these people operate in is crazy. Feels like I’m back at Rutgers on Cook campus.
And they think they are the righteous ones in society. Yikes.
It is a decent stride to love your country. I would of course encourage people who hate themselves and create divisive articles to sell the house behind the gates and doile dark cherry dining tables and head to the south side of Chicago, Paterson, Harlem, Detroit, and anywhere else they want to go see how they are welcomed and embraced in the community. Go and have your experience from outside of the big oak desk.
Who built the underground railroad? In whose homes where the access points and tunnels?
Are white people oppressed in other parts of the world? Like recently in Mexico where they did not want the Gringo relocating or speaking English?
Humanity is an interesting species, we have come so far. We should be grateful that we have the country and the opportunity it seems to present to so many seeking to invade it. Try and celebrate it.