During Black History Month, we recognize the important African-American figures who have shaped our country. Even though these people should be remembered every day of the year, we set aside a month every year to honor their legacy. There are so many people who are recognized for their bravery, courage and talent. Everybody from civil rights activists, such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, to athletes like Jackie Robinson, who did everything to play their favorite sport with people of a different skin color and battled racism and segregation along the way,, are honored and remembered.

The tradition of Black History Month was started by Carter G. Woodson, a black historian. Woodson was born in New Canton, Virginia in 1875 to former slaves. During his life, Woodson lobbied many schools and organizations to participate in a program to honor African-American history. He started his efforts in February of 1926 with the name Negro History Week. He chose the month of February to honor the births of icons Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. Many students feel that the recognition in this month is very important.

“[Black History Month] is to honor people who paved the way for black people to have their rights,” junior Kevin Good said. “Jackie Robinson in my opinion is the most influential African-American because he broke the Major League Baseball color barrier for guys like Willie Mays, Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron and others. His legacy should be remembered for paving the way for other African American players, and he should be remembered for simply the way he played.”

Martin Luther King Jr. is a very popular figure to many people, especially during Black History Month.

“Black History Month is just to remember some of the tough times that [African Americans] have been through,” freshman Thomas Wolfson said. “Martin Luther King Jr. should be remembered this month because of how he fought for his rights in a peaceful way.”

Martin Luther King helped pave the way for many other African Americans and his speech ‘I Have a Dream’ showed the type of person that he was.

Black History Month may be a time to remember the black figures who fought for freedom, but February should not be the only time to remember them. As famed actor Morgan Freeman once said, “Black history is American history.” He feels that he focus of Black History Month should not be to bring your attention to black history for only one month but to honor it even more in depth for that period of time.