The Metropolitan King County Council on Wednesday celebrated the continuing contributions of African-Americans in the United States and throughout the world by proclaiming the month of February Black History Month in King County.
“In a county renamed for one of the greatest African-Americans of the 20th Century and that uses the image of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr as its logo, it is fitting that we celebrate those men and women—the famous and the nameless—who have played a role in the history of our nation,” said Councilmember Larry Gossett in a media release. “Today is also an opportunity to remember the achievements of all the people who have contributed to the greatness of our nation, but have not been recognized in our history books.”
African-American History month was the idea of historian and educator Dr. Carter G. Woodson, who hoped to raise awareness of African American’s contributions to civilization. As the founder of the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, Dr. Woodson created Negro History Week to be celebrated in February, the birth month of Abraham Lincoln and former slave and African American abolitionist Frederick Douglass.
“America was founded on the idea that all people are created equal,” said Vice Chair Reagan Dunn. “Celebrating Black History Month allows us to highlight accomplishments of African-Americans throughout history as well as their continued work in shaping our nation to bring true meaning to the words of our founding fathers.”
The first Negro History Week was celebrated in 1926. In 1976, as America celebrated its bicentennial, Negro History Week became Black History Month, a celebration recognized in the U.S. and Canada.
Members of the Board of the Black Heritage Society of Washington, Inc. were on hand to receive the recognition from the Council.
“We want to thank the County Council for joining us in celebrating the contributions of African-Americans not just in this state, but throughout the world,” said Heritage Society Chair Carol Peoples-Procter. “Ours is a history of many challenges, but also many triumphs, this is an opportunity to recognize and remember those challenges that many in our community are still struggling against.”
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