By Stacey Patton

What would the story of America look like if the history of African American’s struggles and triumphs were excluded?

Would we fully understand the economic, political and social evolution of this nation?

Could we really understand what it means to be American?

Would we be able to deliver nuanced stories of men like Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson?

How would we grapple with the causes and consequences of the Civil War?  How would we talk about concepts like freedom, democracy, identity and citizenship without contemplating race?

African-American history has allowed both blacks, whites, and other groups to come to know themselves in a more nuanced and truthful way even amidst denial. And yet, there are writers, some of them African American, calling for black history to fade to black – no pun intended – for good.

I’ve been perturbed by recent newspaper headlines calling for Black History month to come to an end. For example, on February 1, The Detroit Free Press published “Now’s the Time to End Black History Month, a column by Rochelle Riley. Two days later, a piece by Michael E. Ross, “The End of Black History Month,” appeared in TheRoot. Just four days ago, the Associated Press published “Time to End Black History Month?” by Jesse Washington.

Here we go again. It seems that every February there are complaints about black folks celebrating the history and achievements of other black Americans. Those protesters fall into different camps.

There are whites who don’t want to hear these stories because they are weary of hearing about race. It makes them feel very bad to know that many of their celebrated heroes were racists who did awful things to other humans.

There are those whites who fear the power of black history; that it has the ability to enlighten and empower African Americans giving them a fuller sense of who they are and their contributions to civilization.

And yes, there are white people who don’t want certain myths about blacks’ alleged inferiority and cooked up theories about white superiority to be shattered.  Whiteness has always been defined by what it is not rather that what it really is.  And if what it really is has always been determined by the distortion and degradation of others, then I can understand why that kind of truth can be hard to swallow.

And then, there are the black folks.  There are the conspiracy theorists who complain that “they” gave us the shortest month of the year to reflect upon the black past.  But Negro History Week was founded 83 years ago by Carter G. Woodson, a black man, who wanted the observance to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. In Woodson’s words, he asserted that “the achievements of the Negro properly set forth will crown him as a factor in early human progress and a make of modern civilization.”

There are those blacks who say that by relegating the celebration of our history to February gives black history an adjunct status to American history.

In her column, Rochelle Riley wrote, “. . . this country has reached a point where we can stop celebrating separately, stop learning separately, stop being American separately.  We have reached a point where most Americans want to gain a larger understanding of the people they have not known, customs they have not known, traditions they have not known.”

But the proof is not in the pudding, Ms. Riley. She offers no data or any other kind of tangible evidence to support that Americans are ready to support a truly egalitarian bi-racial, multi-racial society. My time working here at the Legal Defense Fund has revealed just the opposite. Overwhelming data shows that black and Latino students are increasingly learning in segregated schools. Our attorneys diligently keep fighting discrimination in areas of education, housing, voter participation and criminal justice, indicating that America is still a stubbornly racist society.

Folks along the color spectrum cite the tremendous accomplishments of President Barack Obama as a legitimate reason to end Black History Month. This recent call to end another dimension of blackness is part of the ongoing discussions about a new post-racial America. “Look, we have a black president.  Racism is over. The ‘Negro Problem’ has been resolved. Black people are now assimilated into this society, so stop your whining.  And while you’re at it, get rid of affirmative action, historically black colleges and universities, Kwaanza,  and Black History Month. As a matter of fact, why don’t you people drop the black and African hyphenations and just be Americans?

“For god’s sake, can’t we just stop talking about race!”

No, we can’t and we shouldn’t because American history is incomplete. For the most part, only one part of the story continues to be told and it is told very badly. It is a positive story about nationalism. Despite glints of hope here and there, it is a story about how America keeps getting better all the time even as it continues to crumble from within. That story of the deeds of great white men often denies that people of all stripes were treated badly  in this country. It denies that the idea of freedom and democracy are concepts, not reality.

Too many students and average Americans have not grasped that truth. They accept a version of American history that they’ve learn in primary schools and they hold onto to those myths and ideologies. And there is often a very visceral reaction to anything that disrupts that story about American exceptionalism, including, the struggles and accomplishments of black people and other marginalized groups.

We should not end Black History Month is because no other group has ended their holidays or cultural celebrations. There have been no calls for the Italians to stop throwing parades in honor of Christopher Columbus. No one tells the Irish to stop wearing green and holding parties on St. Patrick’s Day. Nobody tells Latinos and Asians that their heritage days are irrelevant.  Does anyone dare say we should get rid of Women’s History Month? I wonder what kind of uproar there’d be if newspapers allowed various writers to suggest that we end Jewish observances or stop talking about the Holocaust?

The point is that every group has the ability to regenerate their history through holidays and observances. America still doesn’t know enough about African Americans and our issues. Black people still don’t know enough about themselves and why they face the stark realities and vestiges of racism every day.

Our racial issues will never be resolved and an understanding of the issues that call for a need to understand black history will never be resolved if we continue these vicious pursuits to end all things black. Perhaps one day there will be no need for Black History month, but not until our struggles, triumphs and lives are completely folded into the American experience in a way that the seams don’t fully show.

Stacey Patton is Senior Editor/Writer for TheDefendersOnline and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.