In an effort to stamp out such ignorance, the handful of black students on campus bonded together to produce Black History Month programs for our peers. Administrators and college contributors who supported the idea of raising awareness of African American culture at our school brought famous black speakers to lecture, and even paid for the black students to have dinner with them. While I certainly benefited from meeting some of my idols, people like Carl Rowan and Gwendolyn Brooks, these efforts seemed to make little difference in our battle against ignorance. Some professors assigned their classes to attend these forums, and many of the students resented it. "Why do I have to listen to these people?" they'd say. "I don't know what they're talking about."

Unfortunately, I still hear similar comments today in my role as a teacher and a journalist. I've heard them from students of all races when I ask them to research people who aren't in their textbooks: "Who cares about this person, anyway?" And Black History Month hasn't changed much either. Every February we sing "We Shall Overcome," but after 28 days, the hype is over. And what have our students really learned? That black history isn't really a part of American history?

For more than 20 years, central Illinois storyteller and educator Garry Moore has educated schoolchildren, teachers, school board members, and parents about black history. While he accepts dates at school programs during Black History Month he resents the double-edged sword it represents. " If school systems are not creative enough to incorporate African and African American material in their curriculum on a year-round basis," Moore says, "then those of us who are storytellers have to swallow our idealism and oblige the invitations to their February programs... all while still advocating for year-round instruction."

Some teacher colleges are beginning to address the need for a year-round multicultural curriculum. Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois, for example, requires students to take a course that exposes them, often for the first time, to people of many races who have contributed to our culture and history. Bradley Teacher Education Chair Dr. Barbara Penelton believes that courses like Bradley's at least provide a knowledge base for future teachers to effect change within their own classrooms.

"Most teachers really want change. They want diversity," says Felicia Kang, a teacher at the Spense School in New York City. In addition, she says, when school districts hire teachers from different backgrounds and ethnic groups, it increases the awareness of culture within the school system. Yet when teachers, students, parents-even society as a whole- all become habituated to studying black history in February, it can be a real challenge to break from the familiar pattern.

I learned how hard it can be when I taught an Upward Bound summer program last July. The college-bound, low-income students were African American, Hispanic, Vietnamese, and white, and all came from Peoria, a small city where Broadway shows appear many years after the original production has completed its run in New York. That's why I was excited when they showed an interest in the talented young dancer Savion Glover, who was in a commercial they had seen. "Girl, he's a real smooth dancer. Ooooh, I think he's the bomb," said one 16-year-old. Together, we dreamed of a visit to New York to see Glover in his Tony Award-winning play, Bring in da Noise, Bring in da Funk.

We discussed the origins of hip-hop and decided that this generation needs a historical wake-up call to their roots: There are other living legends who paved the way for Glover to enjoy his career on stage and screen today. I used this discussion to introduce Illinois native Katherine Dunham to my students. Dunham, now 87, choreographed and trained Hollywood dancers in the 1930s and now heads an organization that teaches dance to teens and young adults in East St. Louis, Illinois. I shared my collection of books and newspaper articles about Dunham with the class and gave students unlimited Internet access, videos, and computerized library resources. Their assignment was to research and write a comparison/contrast paper on the contributions of Glover and Dunham to the world of dance.

Within days, my home phone was ringing off the hook. An angry parent-who was black-wanted to know how I could expect positive results from this asssignment during the summer. Wasn't Black History Month celebrated in March? If this had been Black History Month, the library would have had a display, all of the educational specials would have been listed in TV Guide, and the Who's Who of Black America would have been on tour giving speeches, workshops, and lectures. As the essays trickled in, I kept hearing the same comment from the students.

Did I really need to explain that I was simply teaching a part of American culture which happened to involve two African Americans, a woman, and an art form that has been influenced by many people of color? Surely it's understood by now that there aren't enough hours in Black History Month to teach about all the contributions we've made to this country. Do we really still need to compartmentalize education into neatly prepackaged monthly ethnic, religious, or gender flavors?

According to Bradley professor Dr. Demetrice Worley, these months are important. She believes that today's students-from all backgrounds-have experienced a cultural void in their education. Even her African American students aren't well-read on black authors, she says, so she uses Black History Month to expose her students to Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Richard Wright, and many others.

Also, Worley points out, as more people of color become famous and successful in mainstream America, it becomes even more vital to learn what and who came before them. "For all the Oprah Winfreys and Bill Cosbys out there, we have many, many unsung heroes," Worley says. "Some people look at Oprah and Bill's success and say, 'We don't need Black History Month any more,' but that's not true. Who paved the way for Oprah and Bill? We have a long way to go in America before we can eliminate this month."

Felicia Kang, who also serves as the Spense School's advisor for Asian American students, agrees. While more year-round multicultural programs must be implemented, Kang says, she also believes the nationally celebrated months should continue. "Some people say we don't need them any more," she says, "but all schools aren't the same. In most schools it's all we have.

"What we need to focus on is having the students actively involved in the learning process," she continues. "During Asian American History Month last year, our Asian students made centerpieces about Asian American history for our cafeteria. They had to research the people and find photos for their displays. It wasn't just another speech or workshop that they had to sit through, and the other students were able to learn about another culture through the eyes of their peers."

So perhaps it's too soon to do away wtih special months entirely. Perhaps we do need them to focus attention on gaps in the standard curriculum. But individual teachers can start the process of change with or without a year-round multicultural curriculum. We don't need a mandate to simply infuse more people of color-experts in their given fields who happen to be African American, Asian American, Hispanic, or Native American, just to name a few-into the classroom when studying that curriculum area. Here are just a few examples:

English: writers Maxine Hong Kingston, N. Scott Momaday, Gwendolyn Brooks, Rita Dove, Toni Morrison.
Math: professors J. Earnest Wilkins, Jr., Freddie L. Frazier
Business: entrepreneurs Madame C.J. Walker, Reginald Lewis, Berry Gordy, Jr.
Political Science: politicians Daniel Inouye, Henry Cisneros, Shirley Chisolm.
Civil Rights: leaders Wilma Mankiller, Marcus Garvey, Ida B. Wells Barnett.
Science: astronaut Ellison Onizuka, inventor George Washington Carver, astronomer Benjamin Banneker.
Visual & Performing Arts: painters Henry Ossawa Tanner and Faith Ringgold, dancers Maria and Marjorie Tallchief, choreographers Judith Jamison and Arthur Mitchell. 

The list could go on and on, and there are many sources of information about these people that are available all year long. Simply by including these and other innovators in the mainstream curriculum, teachers can make a difference, and children can learn in an integrated way. If enough of us do it, someday, perhaps, we will overcome the "Black History Month" mentality.

The author wishes to give special thanks to Ms. Millie Hall, Chairman of the Board of Directors for Peoria's Afro-American Hall of Fame Museum, for special use of her research facility.
 

For questions or comments about this page please contact the webmasterat mdecker@pekin.net.