CRANFORD, NJ — The Cranford Township Committee honored Black History Month for recognizing black individuals who have made significant contributions in a time when they weren’t accepted due to racism and segregation at its meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 8. With the township highlighting the importance of this month, Cranford residents are reminded of the great strides many black notable individuals have made.
Deputy Mayor Jason Gareis kicked off the meeting with an invocation by reciting the Langston Hughes poem “I Dream a World,” a world, says Hughes, “where black or white, / Whatever race you be, / Will share the bounties of the earth.”
Cranford Mayor Kathleen Miller Prunty read a proclamation honoring Black History Month and detailed the origin of the historic month. Within the proclamation, Miller Prunty also identified black families that have contributed to Cranford’s wonderful history.
“During Black History Month, we celebrate the main achievements and contributions made by African Americans to our economic, cultural, spiritual and political development,” Miller Prunty said during the proclamation at the meeting.
The mayor then identified historian Carter Woodson, who founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, now known as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, in 1915. In 1926, that organization determined that the second week of February would be known as Negro History Week. In 1976, as part of the nation’s bicentennial, Black History Week was expanded and became Black History Month, which is now celebrated throughout most of North America.
“Whereas the observance of Black History Month calls our nation’s attention to the continued need to battle racism and to build a society that lives up to democratic ideals,” Miller Prunty continued, “Whereas Cranford’s rich history could not be written without including names such as Culbreath, Randolph, Parrotts, Cannon, Bryant, Mason, Brown, Harris and so many more.”
Miller Prunty said that, in 2020, Cranford saw the creation of the Cranford Equity and Inclusivity Initiative and the Cranford Unity Project to foster awareness and respect for cultures and contributions of all people. These efforts were to promote a better understanding and to help make Cranford a more welcoming and stronger community. She said that the 2022 Cranford Township Committee strongly supports these initiatives and is committed to standing against racism and standing for equal treatment, equal opportunity and respect for all people.
“Now, therefore, I, Kathleen Miller Prunty, mayor of the township of Cranford, do hereby proclaim the month of February as Black History Month and urge all citizens to celebrate our diverse heritage, culture and continue our efforts to create a world that is more just, peaceful and prosperous for all,” concluded the mayor. “Issued this eighth day of the month of February 2022.”