Does 3/5= 1/12

Febuary is known for many things. It's the shortest month of the year. It is also know for valentines day, at least by those who are constantly reminded by a significant other, or lack there of. It also happens to be known as Black History Month. Black history month is where we take one month out of the year to appreciate the importtant people and events that have occured in history by those of African descent. People like Martin Luther King Jr, Nelson Mandela, and Frederick Douglas, to name a few. It first started in 1926, as black history week. It took place on the second week of febuary, because that week shares the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglas. It was then expanded into the full month as the idea gained popularity.
        Black History Month is where we take a month out of the year to apprecaite Black history, but is it really being appreciated? There are no official Black History Month (BHM) celebrations or traditions, unless you want to count a couple TV spots on the subject as well as maybe a slightly altered lesson plan in some schools. In addition it is only one month a year. This sends the wrong message. It's telling people that we can relegate black history to only one month, and not have to pay attention to it during the others. On an interview during sixty minutes, Morgan Freeman says it simply, "I don't want a black history month. Black history is American history."
        And he is right. Why should we separate the two like we are. With this one month that we try to show appreciation for African history in America we are essentially only making it seem less important. Why don't we have a "Native American" history month? If they are just another part of American history why aren't the African Americans. This constant labeling and distinguishing between African, white, Asian, etc, is what is causing racism and why it hasn't died out yet. Racism only exists if people believe in it, even if its whole concept of race inferiority is fundamentally flawed and has been disproven scientifically, as we learned in my American Studies class. As long as we keep referring to people as white or black instead of just people racism will always exist.