DEIB Debriefs

DEIB Debriefs

Sameed Marco | DEIB Editor

Black History Month:

   Across the country, people and institutions alike recognize February as Black History Month. This celebration dates back to 1926, when the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), now the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), sponsored a national Negro History Week. The week took place during the second week of February to honor the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. 

   By the late 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement expanded the week-long celebration into a month-long one. Then, in 1976, President Gerald Ford officially recognized the month and encouraged people to acknowledge the often-overlooked accomplishments of Black Americans. Each year, the ASALH president announces a theme for Black History Month, and this year, that theme is “A Century of Black History Commemorations.” 

Martin Luther King Jr. Day:

  This year, Jan. 19 is Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Day, a day to honor the life and legacy of American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. After his death in 1968, many activists and organizations advocated for recognition of his contributions to the civil rights movement. After 15 years of campaigning, President Ronald Reagan signed Public Law 98-144 in 1983, establishing Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a federal holiday. 

  Today, it is the only federal holiday designated as a national day of service, encouraging Americans to volunteer and strengthen their communities.