National African American History Month Speech Resources: Fact Sheet

National African American History Month Speech Resources: Fact Sheet

National African American History Month Speech Resources: Fact Sheet

Updated February 4, 2025

Congressional Research Service

https://crsreports.congress.gov

R44363

Congressional Research Service

SUMMARY

National African American History Month Speech Resources: Fact Sheet

This fact sheet links to authoritative information resources related to National African American History Month, which is also referred to as African American History Month and Black History Month. It is designed to assist congressional offices with work related to National African American History Month by providing links to legislation, CRS reports, selected congressional statements and remarks from the Congressional Record, and presidential proclamations and remarks. It also links to additional government resources and selected advocacy, educational, cultural, and military organizations.

R44363

February 4, 2025

Maya V. Thomas Reference and Digital Services Librarian

National African American History Month Speech Resources: Fact Sheet

Congressional Research Service

Contents

Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 1 History ....................................................................................................................................... 1

Legislation ................................................................................................................................. 2

Related CRS Reports ................................................................................................................. 2

Selected Congressional Statements and Remarks ..................................................................... 2 Presidential Proclamations and Remarks .................................................................................. 3 Selected Federal Government Resources .................................................................................. 3

Nongovernment Resources ....................................................................................................... 4

Contacts

Author Information .......................................................................................................................... 4

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Introduction

National African American History Month, also referred to as African American History Month and Black History Month, is observed annually in February, in celebration of the achievements of “all that Black Americans have done to help our country.”¹ National African American History Month “provides opportunities for our Nation’s public schools, institutions of higher learning, and the public to gain a deeper understanding and knowledge of the many contributions of Black Americans to our country and the world.”²

This fact sheet is designed to assist congressional offices with work related to National African American History Month. It provides a selection of authoritative information resources on National African American History Month, including links to legislation, CRS reports, sample speeches and remarks from the Congressional Record, and presidential proclamations and remarks. It also provides links to additional government resources and selected advocacy, educational, cultural, and military organizations.

History

The origins of National African American History Month date back to 1926, when Dr. Carter G. Woodson, a noted scholar of Black history, set aside time in February to recognize the heritage, achievements, and contributions of African Americans.³ Since 1976, the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), the organization founded by Dr. Woodson, has expanded the observance of Black History Week into a month-long celebration.⁴ The passage of P.L. 99-244 officially designated February 1986 as Black History Month.⁵

Presidents Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and George H.W. Bush’s messages on the observance were calls to celebrate “National Afro-American (Black) History Month.”⁶ In 1992, George H.W. Bush recognized February as “National African American (Black) History Month,”⁷ and every President since Bill Clinton in 1996 has proclaimed February as “National African American History Month.”⁸

Each year, the national theme for the National African American History Month celebration is chosen by ASALH. The theme for 2025 is “African Americans and Labor.”⁹

1 P.L. 99-244

2 Ibid.

3 Daryl Michael Scott, “Origins of Black History Month,” Association for the Study of African American Life and History, at https://asalh.org/about-us/about-black-history-month/.

4 Ibid.

5 P.L. 99-244

6 For more information, see The American Presidency Project, at https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/advanced-search? field-keywords=%22National+Afro-American+%28Black%29+History+Month%22.

7 George H.W. Bush, “Message on the Observance of National African-American (Black) History Month, February 1992,” presidential remarks, The American Presidency Project, January 29, 1992, at https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ documents/message-the-observance-national-african-american-black-history-month-february-1992.

8 For more information, see The American Presidency Project, at https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/advanced-search? field-keywords=%22National+African+American+History+Month%22.

9 For more information on this year’s theme and past themes, see Association for the Study of African American Life and History, “Black History Themes,” at https://asalh.org/black-history-themes/.

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Legislation

This section provides a selection of legislation regarding Black History Month.

H.Res. 1040 (2024)—Recognizing and celebrating the significance of Black History Month.

S.Res. 63 (2023)—A resolution celebrating Black History Month.

S.Res. 521 (2022)—A resolution celebrating Black History Month.

H.Res. 74 (2021)—Supporting the goals and ideals of Black History Month and honoring the outstanding contributions of African-American Congressional Medal of Honor recipients.

H.Res. 867 (2020)—Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion and celebrating Black History Month.

P.L. 99-244 (1986)—A joint resolution to provide for the designation of the month of February 1986 as “National Black (Afro-American) History Month.”

Related CRS Reports

CRS has reports on a number of different topics relating to African Americans. Some examples are listed below.

CRS Report RL30378, African American Members of the U.S. Congress: 1870-2020, by Ida A. Brudnick and Jennifer E. Manning

CRS Report R44865, Juneteenth: Fact Sheet, by Devon Galena

CRS Report R47470, Membership of the 118th Congress: A Profile, by Jennifer E. Manning

CRS Report R47520, The Voting Rights Act: Historical Development and Policy Background, by R. Sam Garrett

CRS Report R43626, The Voting Rights Act of 1965: Background and Overview, by Kevin J. Coleman

CRS Report R43244, Women in Congress: Statistics and Brief Overview, by Jennifer E. Manning and Ida A. Brudnick

Selected Congressional Statements and Remarks

Elected officials often deliver speeches, make floor statements, issue press releases, or enter Extensions of Remarks into the Congressional Record to recognize federal holidays and observances. Below are selected examples:

Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton, “Commemorating Black History Month 2024,” remarks in the Extensions of Remarks, Congressional Record, vol. 170, no. 38 (March 1, 2024), p. E203.

Representative Hillary Scholten, “Continuing to Celebrate Black History Month,” remarks in the House of Representatives, Congressional Record, vol. 170, no. 39 (March 5, 2024), p. H817.

Representative Danny K. Davis, “Black History Month,” remarks in the Extensions of Remarks, Congressional Record, vol. 169, no. 36 (February 24, 2023), p. E142.

Representative Michael Lawler, “Recognizing 18 Incredible Individuals in Honor of Black History Month,” remarks in the Extensions of Remarks, Congressional Record, vol. 169, no. 37 (February 27, 2023), p. E156.

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Representative Don Bacon, “Black History Month,” remarks in the House of Representatives, Congressional Record, vol. 167, no. 21 (February 4, 2021), p. H331.

Senator Dick Durbin, “Black History Month,” remarks in the Senate, Congressional Record, vol. 167, no. 33 (February 22, 2021), pp. S757-S758.

Representative Joyce Beatty, “Observing Black History Month,” remarks in the House of Representatives, Congressional Record, vol. 166, no. 40 (February 28, 2020), pp. H1255-H1256.

Presidential Proclamations and Remarks

One of the many uses of a presidential proclamation is to ceremoniously honor a group or call attention to certain issues or events. Some recent National African American History Month proclamations, from the White House website and the Compilation of Presidential Documents, include the following:

Presidential Proclamations—Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (2021-2025)

Presidential Proclamations—Donald J. Trump (2017-2021)

Presidential Proclamations—Barack H. Obama (2009-2017)

Presidential Proclamations—George W. Bush (2001-2009)

Presidential Proclamations—William J. Clinton (1996-2001)

Presidential proclamations and remarks from 1993 to the present are available through the govinfo service on the U.S. Government Publishing Office website.¹⁰ Earlier remarks (including selected audio and video clips) are available through The American Presidency Project, established by the University of California, Santa Barbara.¹¹

Selected Federal Government Resources

The Black History Month website is a joint effort by the Library of Congress, National Archives, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution, and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and contains an extensive guide to the events, exhibits, collections, audiovisual resources, and research and teaching guides on African American history and culture from their institutions.

African American Heritage (National Archives) provides guides and online access to archival records relating to African American history. These records include manuscripts, videos, and photographs from the National Archives and presidential libraries.

Facts for Features: National Black History Month: February 2025 (U.S. Census Bureau) contains collections of statistics from the Census Bureau’s demographic and economic subject areas related to African Americans.

Spotlight on Statistics: Labor Market Activity of Blacks in the United States, February 2020 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics) contains historical data and projections to provide an economic snapshot of Blacks or African Americans in the U.S. labor market.

Black Americans in Congress (History, Art & Archives, U.S. House of Representatives) contains “biographical profiles of former African-American Members of Congress, links to information

10 For more information, see GovInfo, at https://www.govinfo.gov/.

11 For more information, see The American Presidency Project, at https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/.

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about current Black Members, essays on institutional and national events that shaped successive generations of African Americans in Congress, and images of each individual Member, supplemented by other historical photos.” This website is based on the book Black Americans in Congress, 1870-2007.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture was established as part of the Smithsonian Institution on December 16, 2003, by the African American History and Culture Act (P.L. 108-184). A competition was held to determine the design of the building and the groundbreaking ceremony for the museum was on February 20, 2012. The purpose of the museum is to provide for the establishment of programs relating to African American life, art, and culture encompassing the periods of slavery; reconstruction; the Harlem renaissance; the civil rights movement; and other periods of African American history.

African American History Month and African American Heritage (National Park Service) highlight historic places that preserve African American history, including information about properties recognized by the National Register of Historic Places that “exemplify the contributions of African American culture and achievement.”

Spotlight: Black History Month (U.S. Department of Defense) acknowledges the contributions of Black military and civilian personnel, celebrating the “richness and diversity of their achievements.”

Nongovernment Resources

The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), Founders of Black History Month (in 1926, originally Negro History Week), carries forth the work of its founder, Dr. Carter G. Woodson. ASALH’s mission is “to promote, research, preserve, interpret and disseminate information about Black life, history and culture to the global community.”

The Moorland-Spingarn Research Center at Howard University (DC) has one of the world’s “largest and most comprehensive repository of books, documents, and ephemera on the global Black experience.”

Archives of African American Music and Culture (AAAMC) at Indiana University (Bloomington, IN) is one of the foremost research centers for the study of Black music. The AAAMC houses African American collections and history of religious, classical, blues, gospel, R&B, and hip hop music.

Author Information

Maya V. Thomas Reference and Digital Services Librarian

National African American History Month Speech Resources: Fact Sheet

Congressional Research Service R44363 · VERSION 14 · UPDATED 5

Disclaimer

This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.