Black History Month and Assembly

February is the annual celebration of historical achievements by African Americans to recognize the roles and struggles they have conquered in U.S. history. Since the year 1976, all presidents have assigned February to be the month to celebrate black history. The origins of the month started back in 1915 after the 13th Amendment abolished slavery. Carter Woodson founded a program called ASNLH (Association for the Study of African American Life and History) to research and encourage achievements by African descendants. Originally, ASNLH sponsored an event called Negro History Week in 1926 in the second week of February to celebrate the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglas. Soon, people everywhere started to recognize Negro History Week. Because of the Civil Rights Movement and the growing awareness of contributions from African Americans, this week was turned into Black History Month.