Carter G. Woodson established Black History Month in 1926. Every year has had its own theme, as Woodson felt it important to provide a focus for the public to learn and explore each year. For over 95 years, these themes have reflected the experiences, influences, and aspirations of the Black community. All the topics provide a critical context of how Black History is everyone’s history. 

The 2023 theme is an homage to how Black Resistance set the standard to be the model for all resistance. Most modern-day resistance movements were patterned after the Civil Rights Movement, orchestrated by master think-tanks like Bayard Rustin, A. Philip Randolph, Julian Bond, and Medgar Evers. Movements for migrant workers, labor parties, women’s rights, LGBTQIA+ rights, and now ME Too all utilized the same strategy and the emotional intelligence found in early Black leaders. I’ve suggested some books below to help you learn more about the history of Black resistance. 

Partners to History: Martin Luther King Jr., Ralph David Abernathy, and the Civil Rights Movement

Not in our Lifetimes: The Future of Black Politics

There is  a River: The Black Struggle for Freedom in America

The Deacons for Defense: Armed Resistance and The Civil Rights Movement

hoopla eBook   |   hoopla eAudiobook

Let Freedom Ring: Stanley Tretick’s Iconic Images of the March of Washington

Black Civil Rights During the Johnson Administration

Free All Along : The Robert Penn Warren Civil Rights Interviews

hoopla

When They Call You a Terrorist : a Black Lives Matter Memoir

eBook   |   eAudiobook

Light for the World to See

eAudiobook   | hoopla eBook   |   hoopla eAudiobook

Black Joy : A Strategy for Resistance, Resilience, and Restoration