Filmmaker Demands "End Black History Month"
What are the colors of American History? Are they red, white, and blue? Or are they, red, white, black, brown, beige, tan, olive, yellow, and gray? Is the color of American History determined by the color of the signers of the Declaration of Independence or the colors of all the folks that have worked to build this nation into the wondrous melting pot known as the United States?
The independent film I most looked forward to viewing this Black History Month is also the independent film I found the most thought provoking, relevant, and (gasp) entertaining, More than a Month, written and directed by Shukree Hassan Tilghman. It is a chronicle of the filmmaker’s quest to put an end to Black History Month. Why? Because Black History is American History, a history comprised of many colors.
Tilghman went on the road, interviewing a diverse group of experts, such as his parents, men and women on the street, academics, researchers, and advertising executives. He conducted a psychological study that proved that Black History Month neither decreases or increases feelings of self-worth. He spent time with the Association for the Study of African Life and History and Sons of the Confederacy who believe there should be a Confederate History Month.
Through Tilghman’s travels, we learn about Black History history—the who, where, why, and how of the origins of the month-long commemoration, Black History Month marketing ploys, and who decides what gets into history books and classes. Politics rears its ugly head, but Tilghman handles it (and everything else) with equanimity and humor. Most amusing are vignettes that illustrate his fears and expectations when he began his movement to end Black History Month. The value of More than a Month is enhanced by its balance of wit and gravity.
Black History Month is a Band-Aid over a gaping wound, meant to somehow rectify the lack of Black History in standard American History classes by jamming as much blackness as possible into one of America’s whitest months—snowy February. Black History Month is the time of year when we acknowledge that African Americans have made significant and substantial contributions to our society and culture. Like many others, I’ve supported Black History Month because it seemed the only way of focusing attention on people who have shaped our world but are largely ignored, but bemoaned the fact that the contributions of all Americans are largely ignored.
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