In today’s moment in Black History, we will highlight the “Father of Black History Month,” Mr. Carter G. Woodson. Born December 19, 1875, in New Canton, Virginia, to formerly enslaved parents, Mr. Woodson grew up feeling the sting of limited education and seeing Black stories wiped from the history books. He labored as a sharecropper and coal miner in his youth, but his thirst for knowledge drove him to earn degrees from Berea College, the University of Chicago, and a PhD from Harvard in 1912…making him the second African American to do so. (The first being W.E.B. Du Bois in 1895, paving the way as a scholar, activist, and NAACP co-founder.)
Frustrated by how schools ignored Black contributions, Mr. Woodson committed his life to fixing that. In 1915, moved by a huge Chicago celebration of 50 years since emancipation, he founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (now ASALH) to push serious research into Black life and culture.
A decade later, on February 7, 1926, he launched the first Negro History Week during the second week of February. He picked that timing because it included President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday (February 12) and Mr. Frederick Douglass’s chosen birthday (February 14)…two icons already honored in Black communities for their fight for freedom and equality. The week aimed to highlight overlooked achievements, get schools and groups teaching Black history, build pride, and combat the miseducation that sidelined African Americans.
What began as a week grew steadily. Some states and cities adopted it early, and by the 1940s places like West Virginia (Mr. Woodson’s home state) were stretching it to a full month. In 1976, ASALH expanded Negro History Week into Black History Month, and President Gerald Ford officially recognized February nationwide with a message urging Americans to honor Black accomplishments. Congress cemented it as National Black History Month in 1986.
Mr. Woodson’s dream was never just a yearly event…he wanted constant study and recognition of Black excellence to correct twisted history and empower the next generations. He passed on April 3, 1950, at the age of 74 in Washington, D.C., never seeing the month-long tradition it became.
From one scholar’s quiet resolve grew a powerful tradition that reminds us: Black history is American history…vital, vibrant, and worth celebrating every single day.
Remember… Education is freedom of mind and never should be colorblind.
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