6 Things to do during Black History Month

Black History Month is now upon us. As February rolls in, we once again turn our attention to the Black liberators, educators, preachers, teachers, ancestors and revolutionaries. Though our hearts and minds should be focused on them all year round, Black History Month centers our Black siblings, and now more than ever, we must uplift, stand with, and be in solidarity with our Black siblings. Here are just 6 things to do during Black History Month:

1. Don’t Just Celebrate the Well-Known, Celebrate all Black people
   Every year we hear quotes and read memes of famous Black people throughout history…and that’s wonderful! However, take time throughout your life to celebrate the Black people who have made a difference in your local communities and in your life.
   
2. Support Black Owned Business (including Black queer businesses)
   The systems of racism and white supremacy within our country and world are still at work making it hard for Black businesses to thrive. When it comes to loan assistance, Black people are disproportionately less likely to receive a small business loan than white owned businesses. Find your local Black owned business or online businesses and support them with your resources.
   
3. Read Black Authors
   Pick up a book by Toni Morrison, James Baldwin, Zora Neale Hurston, or Octavia Butler. Go down to your local book shop and find contemporary Black authors both fiction and non-fiction. Delving into the world of Black writers opens us all up to the experiences of Black people and the future they want to see in our world.
   
4. Queer Black History Month
   Sometimes in our celebrations we often forget to recognize the Black queer folk in our lives and in the public who have changed our world. Marsha P. Johnson, Gladys Bentley, Audre Lorde, and more contemporaries like Rivers Solomon and N. K. Jemisin, are just a few of the queer Black folk we all should be lifting up.
   
5. Don’t Just Quote, Move Into Action
   Our social media feeds will be filled with inspiring quotes by inspiring Black revolutionaries. But that is not all that we must do. Racism and white supremacy will not be dismantled through memes, platitudes, or performative neoliberalism. Racism and white supremacy will be dismantled through the everyday actions of justice and change.
   
6. Celebrate Black Joy
   Blackness is beautiful. Blackness is spiritual. Blackness is joyful. On the edges of oppression, there is joy, hope, laughter, and bodily celebration of the wholeness of being Black. May this Black History Month open us up to that joy.

This JustList was created by the Unbound Team.