February is African American History Month. The month celebrates the contributions that African Americans have made to American history in their struggles for freedom and equality and deepens our understanding of our Nation’s history.
On the Law Library’s Commemorative Observations page for African American History Month, you can find an overview of the day as well as Legislative and Executive Branch documents. The Executive Branch documents include the Presidential Proclamations (the most recent being for 2010 and 2011, which will soon be added as well).
Public Law 99-244
In 1986 Congress passed Public Law 99-244 which designated February 1986 as “National Black (Afro-American) History Month.” This law noted that February 1, 1986 would “mark the beginning of the sixtieth annual public and private salute to Black History.” The law further called upon the President to issue a proclamation calling on the people of the United States to observe February 1986 as Black History Month with the appropriate ceremonies and activities.
More resources on African American History Month can be found on the African American History Month website (brought to you by The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum).