Each year, the Association for the Study of African American Life and HIstory, founded by Carter G. Woodson, the father of Black History Month, selects an annual theme for the celebration. This year’s theme, “African Americans and the Arts,” explores the key influence African Americans have had in the fields of “visual and performing arts, literature, fashion, folklore, language, film, music, architecture, culinary and other forms of cultural expression.”
In each of these fields, African-American influence has been paramount. Artistic and cultural movements such as the New Negro, Black Arts, Black Renaissance, hip-hop, and Afrofuturism, have been led by people of African descent and set the standard for popular trends around the world.
For centuries Western intellectuals denied or minimized the contributions of people of African descent to the arts as well as history, even as their artistry in many genres was mimicked and/or stolen.
In 2024, as Black History Month encourages you, take time to examine the varied history and life of African-American artists and artisans. In addition, find ways to support Black artists of today.
More than just listening to the Black music or watching a Black film, we encourage you to take in a Black art exhibit, a play, poetry reading or read a Black book.
