Black History Month 2026: It’s Our Anniversary!

Katura: Every Black History Month, we remind folks: “We celebrate all year. February is just our anniversary.”

 
This year is an extra special anniversary because it marks 100 years since the great Carter G. Woodson, a former sharecropper and miner, turned scholar—launched the first Negro History Week, which became Black History Month in 1976.

One hundred years after Woodson’s vision and advocacy first made history, the organization he founded, ASALH—Association for the Study of African American Life and History, makes it plain: This is our moment to work even harder to protect, preserve, and promote Black history.

But we are clear. It’s always been our moment. To quote Karsonya Wise Whitehead, ASALH National President: “This is not new work. This is not a new struggle. These are not new obstacles. We have been here before and we know what to do.”

Bria: Black History Month is both a celebration and a call to action—wherever you are in the world. It’s a reminder to buy Black by intentionally supporting Black-owned businesses;  support Black by amplifying Black voices and protecting Black lives; love Black by honoring the beauty, creativity, and humanity of Black people; and learn Black by digging deeper into histories, cultures, and contributions that are too often erased or minimized. 

From your own corner of the globe, your choices matter: what you purchase, what you share, what you study, and what you stand up for. When we commit to learning Black stories extra hard and showing up with our resources, respect, and solidarity, Black history becomes not just a month—but a daily practice of justice, appreciation, and care.

Here are a few ways we’re practicing our year-round celebration of US! How are you celebrating? Comments are on. Share your recommendations below!

Events

Black History Month Showcase at POST Houston (Feb. 1, Houston)

RU-N with Legacy: Celebrating 100+ Years of Black Excellence (Feb. 2, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ)

BAIA Fine Art Print Fair at the Houston Museum of African American Culture (Feb. 6-8, Houston)

Third Ward Black History Month Bus Tour (Feb. 7, Houston)

Black History Month Read-In & Book Fair (Feb. 21, East Orange, NJ)

61st Annual Commemoration for the Life & Legacy of El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, Malcolm X (Feb. 21, NYC)

Honoring Jazz Black History Month Celebration (Feb. 25, East Orange, NJ)

Genealogy workshops at Freedmen’s Town / African American History Research (Houston)

“The Black Experience: Past, Present and Future,” exhibition (Houston) 

Freedom exhibit, Studio Montclair Gallery (Montclair, NJ)

Content

Great Migrations: A People on the Move (PBS)

Our Ancestors Were Messy podcast 

Crash Course: Black American History (YouTube)

100 Black Voices Schomburg Centennial Reading List 

28 Days of Black History

Liberation Calendar, a daily guide for an intentional Black History Month practice

ASALH 2026 Black History Month Virtual Convening (replay)