Overview
- The Association for the Study of African American Life and History set the 2026 theme as “A Century of Black History Commemorations.”
- Harvard-trained historian Carter G. Woodson and Jesse E. Moorland founded ASALH in 1915 and launched Negro History Week in 1926.
- The observance was placed in February to align with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln.
- Colleges expanded the recognition to a month in the 1960s, and President Gerald Ford formally recognized Black History Month in 1976.
- Current coverage highlights pressures on teaching Black history, including legislative efforts and book bans cited by ASALH.