{"id":7455,"date":"2024-02-08T06:55:19","date_gmt":"2024-02-08T11:55:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/?p=7455"},"modified":"2024-02-07T09:23:15","modified_gmt":"2024-02-07T14:23:15","slug":"black-history-month-a-tribute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/?p=7455","title":{"rendered":"Black History Month: A Tribute"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ria Beri \u201827
\n<\/span>EE <\/span><\/i>Staff Writer<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>February is Black History Month, a time dedicated to recognizing the contributions that African Americans have made to American society. The National Public Radio defines Black History Month, which officially began in 1976, as \u201cthe honoring of the contributions and sacrifices of African Americans who have helped shape the nation. It is the <\/span>celebration of the rich cultural heritage, triumphs and adversities that are an indelible part of our country’s history.\u201d <\/span>Whether in business, sports, politics, STEM, the arts, or something else, each African American, no matter how famous, has worked to improve the discipline they partake in. This month, we must take the time to recognize and commend these efforts.<\/span><\/p>\n

Originally known as Negro History Week, this observation takes place in February due to President Abraham Lincoln\u2019s and Abolitionist Fredrick Douglass\u2019 birthdays also falling within the month. Lincoln is noted for freeing the slaves through the Emancipation Proclamation while Douglass is credited with leading hundreds of slaves to freedom. To accommodate the constant changes of the African American community, Black History Month has a new theme each year. This year, the theme is \u201cAfrican Americans and the Arts.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>While many Black Americans are highly involved in the creations of the arts, Louis Armstrong and Jean-Michel Basquiat are among the two most popular artists\/musicians. Armstrong, who lived from 1901 to 1971, was a talented trumpeter who helped modernize jazz music. While he lived in New Orleans, Louisiana, Armstrong traveled the world, incorporating the \u201cswing\u201d of jazz music into foreign music. His work has earned him the title of \u201cthe most influential person in jazz.\u201d Similarly, Basquiat created graffiti art and neo-expressionist paintings until his death in 1988. These paintings incorporated raw yet expressive brush strokes and deterred from the traditional art of the time. The images were meant to depict stereotypes associated with Black Americans, as seen in the graffiti poster on the left.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

African American accomplishments in sports include Jesse Owens winning four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, Simone Biles becoming the most decorated American female gymnast, and Arthur Ashe winning three tennis grand slams. In literature, poet Maya Angelou has won the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and writer James Baldwin has received many awards for his written works, which raise public awareness for racial and sexual oppression. Martin Luther King, John Lewis, and Julian Bond were all civil rights activists who also worked tirelessly to secure equality and constitutional rights for African Americans.<\/span><\/p>\n

There are many ways to show your support and appreciation for the African American community this month. You can volunteer in a Black community, create an exhibition using art from African American artists, and\/or partner with Black-Owned businesses and corporations. Another idea, possibly the best one, is to educate yourself. Feel free to use primary sources such as books, documentaries, and speakers to learn about African American history, perspective, and contributions. Organizations such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the National Alliance of Black School Educators (NABSE) are great for combatting African American inequality while meeting and learning about the culture itself.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ria Beri \u201827 EE Staff Writer February is Black History Month, a time dedicated to recognizing the contributions that African Americans have made to American society. The National Public Radio defines Black…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":7458,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7455"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7455\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7461,"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7455\/revisions\/7461"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7458"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thseagleseye.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}