Black History Month

February 12, 2018

(the below is partially reprited from U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs)

In 1915, educator and historian Dr. Carter G. Woodson undertook the task of writing Black Americans into the Nation's history by founding the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, which was later renamed the Association for the Study of African American Life and History.

It was through this organization that Negro History Week was first celebrated in 1926 and subsequently, Black History Month was established in 1976.

Dr. Woodson chose the second week of February for Negro History Week because it marked the birthdays of two people who had greatly impacted Black Americans' lives: Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. However, February has much more than Douglass and Lincoln to show for its significance in Black history. For instance:

• February 23, 1868: W.E.B. Dubois, an important civil rights leader and cofounder of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), was born.
• February 3, 1870: The 15th Amendment was passed, granting Blacks the right to vote.
• February 25, 1870: The first Black U.S. senator, Hiram R. Revels (1822-1901), took the oath of office.
• February 12, 1909: The NAACP was founded by a group of concerned Black and White citizens in New York City.
• February 1, 1960: In what would become a milestone in the civil rights movement, a group of Black college students from Greensboro, North Carolina, staged a sit-in at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter.

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Related Resources    

• American Veterans Center:  Over the years at AVC we have collected numerous stories of black patriots, many of whose stories have historically been overlooked. In honor of Black History Month, we have gathered various clips paying tribute to our nation’s African-American heroes, from the American Revolution through today. 
• Black History Month honors our veterans:  The national theme for 2018 is African American in Times of War. With World War I having ended in 1918, one hundred years later in 2018, the Black History Month theme will appropriately highlight and honor “African Americans in Times of War.” (The Sampson Independent).
• Black History Month:  Military.com
• From VA.GOV
• African Americans in the U.S. Army 
• Navy Live - Black History Month 
• Air Force celebrates African American History Month 
• The Coast Guard Celebrates Black History Month
• Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture 
• African American Organizations 
• U.S. Department of Defense – National African American History Month 
• Defense.gov – 2017 Black History Month 
• The Philippine War - A Conflict of Conscience for African Americans 
• Health and Human Services Populatin Profile:  Black/African Americans
• Commemorating Black History: Contributions of African Americans to the Manhattan Project -- African Americans have played an important role at the Department of Energy since before the agency was even formed. (Energy.gov)

Also see

• African-American war heroes through all of America's conflicts