It’s been 100 years since Carter G. Woodson created a celebration recognizing African American history, and his mission is still a waging battle for Black America.
Before the annual commemoration throughout February, Woodson established Negro History Week in 1926 and, as founder of the Association for African American Life and History (ASALH), set a precedent for what it means to uphold the truths of America – plus the roots engraved by the culture.
From correcting the record on more than four centuries of enslavement, to recognizing the pioneers of justice and equality, what is now a monthlong nod to the architects of the American dream holds a deeper meaning in its centennial milestone for ASALH’s current president.
“To celebrate America at this moment, at the 100th celebration of Black History Month…requires us to fully situate ourselves within the narrative— not as a footnote, but as main characters who have helped to shape this American experience and this American story,” said President Dr. Karsonya “Kaye” Wise Whitehead in a Jan. 12 proclamation video. “We stand in the house of Woodson, and just as he did with the work of so many others, we will uplift our history. We will protect it….promote it, and we will preserve it.”
Marked by a period, as Whitehead calls it, “Trump 2.0,” many national leaders are celebrating this February as a fitting time to realign with the traditions of a century-long promise.
Woodson led the charge, founding the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (now ASALH) in 1915 to fulfill an evident gap in “the scientific study of the neglected aspects of Negro life and history,” according to the NAACP.
A year later, with academic roots in education and literature, the Virginia native credited as the second African American to receive a Ph.D. from Harvard University – after W.E.B. Du Bois – called attention to the achievements of his community when he single-handedly launched the scholarly “Journal of Negro History,” which is still published today.
“Those who have no record of what their forebears have accomplished lose the inspiration which comes from the teaching of biography and history,” Woodson once said.
Former ASALH National President Daryl Michael Scott, who served from 2013 to 2015, once pointed out that the celebrated “Father of Black History” saw recognition as more than a one-week affair – even beyond a month.
After rallying his Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., to create Negro History and Literature Week in 1924, Woodson sought a mission that surpassed the “New Negro” era of the 1920s and officially declared Negro History Week in February 1926 – intentionally coinciding with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln (Feb. 12) and Maryland abolitionist Frederick Douglass, who marked the occasion on Feb. 14.
More than that, Scott’s “The Origins of Black History Month” report highlighted the goal was to demonstrate what students learned year-round, all but foreshadowing a generational rally to preserve the legacy of African Americans.
“It was in this sense that…he looked forward to the time when an annual celebration would no longer be necessary,” wrote the historian and Morgan State University professor. “Woodson believed that Black history was too important to America and the world to be crammed into a limited time frame.”
Fast forward to February 2026, just over a year into Republican President Donald J. Trump’s second term, and America has fallen short of the founders’ dream.
As centennial celebrations bask in the theme “A Century of Black History Commemorations,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) was among the first to underscore the importance of ancestral wisdom in a parallel state of Black America.
“Ensuring that the full story of America is told is now more important than ever, with Donald Trump and his sycophants banning books about Black people from classrooms and libraries, sanitizing history at National Parks and Smithsonian museums and repeatedly glorifying the racist traitors who fought for the Confederacy,” said the congressman in a Feb. 1 press release. “This erasure of history paired with the Trump administration’s elimination of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives is part of a concerted attack on the livelihoods of Black Americans.”
In January 2025, Trump announced that he would no longer acknowledge Black History Month, and he is the first president not to annually issue a presidential proclamation in honor of the observance since its official recognition in 1976.
Ahead of the centennial, Whitehead offered a candid declaration.
“We don’t have to wait to be proclaimed, we don’t have to wait to be recognized,” she told The Informer in December. “Black History Month will continue because our history is written in the wind…written in the ways you can’t stop or outrun. We have visions from people who have come before us – we’re going to use those so that we can be prepared to leave [one] for our children.”
ASALH Carries Torch to ‘Build Something Better‘
Having kicked off commemorations with the Annual Black History Month Festival Opening and Convening on Feb. 1, ASALH is amplifying its year-round mission with a calendar tailored to all aspects of the culture.
Upcoming featured highlights and educational events include: a Feb. 7 Dr. Carter G Woodson Greater Trenton Branch of ASALH Black History 100th Commemoration; the Annual Black History Month Program: A Labor of Freedom, Then and Now with the Movement History Initiative on Feb. 11, followed the next day by a symposium for the 126th Anniversary of Lift Every Voice and Sing; activations and membership meetings for ASALH’s 45 branches across the country; and honorary tributes and programs rooted in the reflection, evolution and progression of Black people.
“Our history is both bloody and beautiful,” Whitehead said in her January proclamation. “The study of it requires constant and continuous interpretation…the understanding of it requires us as Black people to see ourselves and our history only through our eyes.”
Walking the path forged by Woodson shines in a continued dedication to the Freedom Schools established across 23 of the national branches, she added, where Black scholars not only learn their roots but are charged to spread that history elsewhere.
The association also prides itself on instilling the importance of collective resistance in the modern movement, such as sustaining boycotts against corporations and policies that don’t move in the interests of communities of color.
“We need to train our children, teach our children, love…and help [them] to focus on turning towards the truth, ” Whitehead told The Informer, “teaching them about who they are, our contributions to this country, about the fact that if we are going to move beyond this moment, then we’ve got to be prepared.”
In the wake of a new year, the ASALH president is emphasizing another critical task for all: finding ways to reinvest in community, be it the Black dollar or forging more partnerships.
“That’s what survival in 2026 is going to look like,” she continued. “Let’s focus on building something better – let’s actually bring about a situation in this country where we have equity, we have diversity, we have inclusion.”
Jeffries topped his centennial proclamation by highlighting his own commitment to the fight led by the ancestors of Black resilience.
“House Democrats will push back aggressively against efforts to turn back the clock on progress and whitewash American history,” Jeffries wrote, before quoting the mantra of the late Georgia Rep. John Lewis. “We remain inspired by the examples of those who got into Good Trouble and committed to pushing forward our country’s long, necessary and majestic march towards a more perfect union.”
While it’s unknown what Woodson would think of the current “war” in the nation, Whitehead said she plans to champion the movement guided by the ASALH’s founder’s cause to commemorate the lives and legacies of African Americans.
“My hope is that we’re still here, we’re still standing, and we can celebrate our victories on the other side,” she told The Informer. “We are at war – I look forward to seeing you on the other side.”