And Black History for All

America’s redemption will come when it truly comes to terms with its troubled past

As an African American, there are vast areas of our history that I was not aware of. But do not worry, I knew the significance of Juneteenth, and no, Trump did not enlighten me on the matter.

While in high school during Black History, we learned about the usual suspects, and we skated through the Civil War. And I drew anxious gazes from classmates and teachers alike at the thorny issue of slavery. As we watched a plethora of slave-related movies, some of my fellow African American students crouched in embarrassment.

A handful of Black History classes added to my sliver of knowledge in college. The adage that if we do not learn from past mistakes, we are doomed to repeat them in the future. Today, we are at a critical inflection point as the issues of systemic racism threaten to engulf a divided nation. Slavery, violence, and prejudice against minorities are the virulent dark stains on the American tapestry - a litany of broken promises and deadly intent.

1921 Greenwood, Oklahoma: The site of the worst massacres in US history. Greenwood dubbed the Black Wall Street, was a mecca of black prosperity until jealous whites burned it to the ground and slaughtered town residents by the hundreds. Attacks were even launched from the skies as privately owned planes strafed the terrified community below with incendiary devices. Over 10,000 residents were made homeless, and the black lives and prosperity were decimated.

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Justice was denied to the people of Greenwood, nobody was ever prosecuted, and insurance companies failed to honor their obligations to compensate for devastated property and business owners. Today Greenwood is a hollow shell of its former self. Over the decades, infrastructural and commercial development has bypassed the and unemployment rates for minorities remain high.

“This our history. 401-year odyssey encompasses tragedy, triumph, and the indomitable spirit of a battle-scarred people.”

The multicultural hordes on the streets are demanding an end to systemic racism. America's redemption will come when it truly comes to terms with its troubled past. And strive for that elusive, more perfect union.

The euphoria of Obama’s presidency and the potential of a post-racial society seems to have dimmed in the obsidian shadow of Trump's dark American vision.

We can do better and must do better, the people demand it.

For the wider society, learning about black history and being enlightened by it is crucially important in the quest for empathy and mutual understanding. We live in momentous times with a real chance to reset and end systemic racism.

If the chains of the nation's painful past, are broken, then surely we will all be “Free at last, Free at last, Thank God almighty we are free at last.”

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Related

“Black History Month”

— February

The artist stitches together Black history one portrait at a time.

A former art school teacher, Bisa Butler, used the art of quilt making to stitch together the African American experience and celebrate Black life in America.

#NorahO'Donnell, #CBSnews, #BlackHistoryMonth, #BisaButlerArt, #BisaButler

Video Credited: CBS News

She transformed their stories onto fabric one portrait at a time.

A Fractures Mosaic

As we pursue racial and economic equality, the 'ADOS' needs to realize 'United We Stand, Divided We Fall.'

By Theo Edwards and Ola George

Black people as a whole are a complex myriad of cultures and a beautiful array of colors. Many, of course, the descendants of former slaves. For many, the bitter legacy and the enduring struggle for civil rights and equality have been over time an unceasing quest.

American Descendants of Slavery (ADOS) a term to specifically distinguish African Americans of slave descent. Coined by Yvette Carnell, and Lawyer Antonio Moore describes people whose ancestors were slaves in the USA before the Civil War.

I hail from a secondary group of black people, known collectively as the Diaspora. Migrating from the Caribbean, Africa, and virtually all parts of the globe, the Diaspora has been hugely influential in the making of this unique American tapestry.

I was happily basking in my blackness until I read an article about the African Descendents Of Slavery (ADOS). This group's world view is bent on the philosophy that the Diaspora has detracted from the development of blacks in the US. According to the ADOS, any economic, social or educational benefits only be the purview of “pure” blacks.

As a group, blacks have never been monolithic in their political thinking. Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois had competing ideologies in the nineteenth century. Additionally 'Malcolm X and his separatist stance was a stark contrast to the likes of Martin Luther King (MLK) integration vision.

ADOS Wants Reparations—But at the Cost of Black Unity. While I Will Concede

Down The Rabbit Hole that as a relative newcomer from the Diaspora, I should not be part of any reparations settlement if that ever comes to pass.

However, I find the rest of the argument fatuous, divisive, and quite frankly, hurtful. The ADOS perspective diminishes the struggles and successes of those of us who came here to seek a better life. We arrived here we should be, united by our common heritage and cultural bonds. As we pursue racial and economic equality, the 'ADOS' needs to realize 'United We Stand, Divided We Fall.'