In response to the author of "Black History Month is racist by definition," (CT, Feb.23) the Virginia Tech Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People welcomes fellow organizations to accompany us in our efforts to convey that members of the Virginia Tech community will not sit idly while attempts are made to dishonor the only time of the year when blacks are commended.
In last Friday's editorial, the author articulated an argument centered on the premise that racism is simply people being treated differently according to their racial designation. Unfortunately, this definition is erroneous. According to experts in the field of race relations, racism is a system that has constructed predetermined advantages and disadvantages based on race. America has never, and does not currently, function as a society that privileges black people. Consequently, the idea of Black History Month being racist is utterly impossible. Because there is no institution that marginalizes whites, "White History Month" is unnecessary. The history of white people has been so forcefully fed into our diet, that every aspect of daily living has been successfully infiltrated with honoring whiteness. Without a doubt, this is evident on Virginia Tech's campus. Within almost every building, white history is being permanently memorialized through statues, tributes and paintings. In addition, all cultures are so overly saturated with the dominant, seemly "universal," white view and aesthetic that every month, even February, operates as a "White History Month."
Black History Month was originally a week-long celebration founded by Carter G. Woodson. His reasoning for starting this celebration is because history, as we know, is not accurate when told from the dominant white perspective. History has been written to glorify one group, over all others and to perpetuate racism. Therefore, Black History Month is constructed to rectify the culture and insights of people that have continued to operate within a society that systematically marginalizes them. Similar to Black History Month, National Women's History Month, Hispanic-Latino Heritage Month, Asian-Pacific Heritage Month, American Indian Heritage Month and a variety of other months recognize specific groups in attempt to counter the many distorted or minimized histories that circulate within our educational systems.
The Tech chapter of NAACP would like to thank everyone involved in making Black History Month 2007 a success. In addition, we would also like to encourage the university community to remain conscious of upcoming multicultural programs and events on campus.
Lorenza Cooper, Jr.
VT NAACP President, and
Shayla Monet Corprew
VT NAACP 1st Vice President