Black History Month rubs a lot of people the wrong way. Some oppose the idea of tokenizing black history in one (short) month. Others object to the insinuation that American history isn’t itself defined by black history. And ironically, many just can’t relate to the nearly century-old context for Carter G. Woodson’s Negro History Month. But perhaps most of all, Black History Month struggles under an impossible question: Whose history is it? Too many of us can recall being as alienated as we were empowered by the lessons of uplift we heard growing up. With that in mind, Nia King offers her own take on black history heroes. Here’s to still talking about it come March. –Editors