Black Women Need Their Own History Month and Here Is Why.

The three months that Black women are honored throughout the year is Black History Month, Women’s History Month, and some during Pride Month. While Black women are celebrated now in each of these months they were not always respected in the movements. Creating a Black Women’s History Month will recognize the Black women who have been overlooked in these movements. As Black women are the most educated demographic in the country they don’t get the recognition that they deserve.

Black women face many inequalities that still exist today. Women make 79 cents for every dollar a man earns while Black women earn only 64 cents on the dollar. With Black women being less likely to receive promotions as for every 100 men promoted to manager, only 58 Black women are promoted.

These issues tie in with giving Black women their own history month, because it goes beyond giving them the recognition that they deserve. Having a Black Women’s history month will start the conversation that allows for inequalities against Black women that still exist today to be recognized on a national level allowing the appropriate measures to be taken to fix these issues.

With the movement to create a Black Women’s History Month has already been started by Shia Battle. During an interview with Bauce, Shia Battle told Shahidah Foster.

“I felt that Black History Month was not enough to celebrate the contributions that black women have made to world history.” Battle said. “Many of our contributions have never been acknowledged. I knew that March was Women’s History Month and, while I am so happy about that, I felt like we [Black women] needed our own month to celebrate the contributions that we as a culture have made to world history.”

Battle’s plan of a Black Women’s History Month is not just about African American women. Battle wants to include the entire African diaspora while not only honoring those women of the past, but to honor Black women of the present as well.

“I look forward to broadcasting the award shows so that the world can take part in the celebration,” Battle said. “I am hoping that Black and Minority women can feel honored by the work that is meant to celebrate their contributions and accomplishments”.

Battle was able to host the Black Women’s History Month Honors on April 27, 2019 in Atlanta GA. Battle sees this as a start to a much bigger movement that will honor Black women for their contributions all across the world.

It has now been 5 years since Battle was able to officially get the month of April as Black Women’s History Month in the city of Atlanta GA. Since then we have seen the first woman Vice President Kamala Harris, the youngest Executive Producer in History Marsai Martin, and the richest female musician Rihanna with each of them being Black women.

When faced with adversity Black women are still able to find ways to lift their communities up. Black women have always been on the front lines of movements like the women’s suffrage movement, the Civil Rights Movement,and the gay rights movement. While on the frontlines their stories begin to fade in history allowing others to take credit of all the hard work that Black women have put in all throughout American History. That must end now we need to honor Black women with a month to show how much they have done for society, and to shed light on the issues that Black women are still faced with today.

Black women are more than just a minority of women, a gender of African American, or a member of the LGBTQIA community. Black women have their own history and stories that need to be honored in it’s own month.