PUSD Will Celebrate National Black History Month

Marshall Fundamental Black Student Union February 2020 (File Photo – Felita Kealing)

The Board of the Pasadena Unified School District voted unanimously to recognize the month of February, 2021, as National Black History Month.

 By Laura Hackett

The first Black History event was celebrated during a week in February, 1926, encompassing the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, two key figures in the history of Black Americans. February is designated as National Black History Month; and this year’s theme is “The Black Family: Representation, Identity and Diversity,” exemplifying black families who offer a rich tapestry of images for exploring the African-American, past and present. This theme recognizes the struggle for voting rights among both black men and women throughout American history. Voter suppression is an ongoing struggle experienced by people of color that continues into the 21st century.

National Black History Month was established in response to the inadequate and often times biased depiction of black history and African American communities in history books and schools’ curricula of the era. African Americans helped develop our nation in countless ways, and the contributions of African American citizens and scientists, inventors, educators, farmers, homemakers, and explorers of earth and sky, have been recognized annually during National Black History Month. African American citizens have participated in every American effort to secure, protect, and maintain the essence and substance of American democracy. It will be an opportunity for all students in the district to enrich their educational experience and to deepen their understanding of black history.

The development of the skills learned during National Black History Month will contribute to every student becoming an advocate of the rights of the individual, the rights of minorities, and the rights and responsibilities of citizens in a democracy.