Black History Month in America

America celebrates Black History Month each February.

Teaching heritage to our children in America is important for a country which is a melting pot of cultures. Teaching our children pride in one’s own heritage enhances our lives as Americans.

James Stewart is the president of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. The history of Black History month is that Dr. Carter G. Woodson started the association in 1915 when it was first called Negro History Week, which later evolved into Negro History month and now is “Black History Month.”

James Stewart collects African American art at his home in Pennsylvania.

"The piece here is a representation by Elizabeth Catlett of a lynching," he said. "There are no faces of the perpetrators so that it is a way of saying that this is really a cultural phenomenon as opposed to something that is done by individuals." Stewart explains that Black History Month is an effective method to combat such persecution.

"For so many decades, there was a dismissal of the impact of people of African descent on Western civilizations," said Stewart. "So the recovery and elevation of that history is absolutely critical for ongoing efforts to try to promote equality in this country."

As black neighborhoods shrink, James Stewart fears the values of black heritage shrink as well.