"One is astonished in the study of history at the recurrence of the idea that evil must be forgotten, distorted, skimmed over. We must not remember that Daniel Webster got drunk but only that he was a splendid constitutional lawyer. We must forget that George Washington was a slave owner . . . and simply remember the things we regard as creditable and inspiring. The difficulty, of course, with this philosophy is that history loses its value as an incentive and example; it paints perfect man and noble nations, but it does not tell the truth."~* W.E.B. Du Bois
"When you deal with the past, you're dealing with history, you're dealing actually with the origin of a thing. When you know the origin, you know the cause. It's impossible for you and me to have a balanced mind in this society without going into the past, because in this particular society, as we function and fit into it right now, we're such an underdog, we're trampled upon, we're looked upon as almost nothing. Now if we don't go into the past and find out how we got this way, we will think that we were always this way. And if you think that you were always in the condition that you're in right now, it's impossible for you to have too much confidence in yourself, you become worthless, almost nothing. But when you go back into the past and find out where you once were, then you will know that you once had attained a higher level, had made great achievements, contributions to society, civilization, science, and so forth. And you know that if you once did it you can do it again; you automatically get the incentive, the inspiration and the energy necessary to duplicate what our forefathers did." ~*Malcolm X
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During my adolescence upon seeing the commercial by McDonald's Lighting candles to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I knew my favorite time of year was approaching.
During the month of February We paid homage to 4 of my favorite people. A woman that refused to leave her seat A male baseball player A female conductor on the underground railroad And a man who had a dream.
I vividly remember The excitement I felt Every Black History Month.
Unlike the individuals I read about all year round Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson, Harriet Tubman, and MLK Filled me with a sense of pride To be an African-American.
I was so overjoyed to learn something different It never occurred to me to ask Why did we spend an entire month Year in and out... Talking about the exact same people?
I didn't recognize The information that was withheld And the gaps in between what I was taught Until my eyes were slightly open In November of 1992.
I was eleven years old When my mother and father took me to see Malcolm X Directed by Spike Lee.
At the time, Malcolm X Was the longest movie I ever saw in my life. I was enthralled every second I sat in the movie theater watching.
At the closing credits I was in awe of a man I never knew existed And how different he was from the four individuals I learned about Every year.
My curiosity was piqued.....
A few months later During the 1st day in school of Black History Month I anticipated asking my history teach about Malcolm X.
We knew everything there was to know about Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson, Harriet Tubman, and MLK Surely we could discuss something different, right? WRONG!
I was told, if Malcolm X was important He'd be in our history books. Being that he isn't, Learning about him wasn't up for discussion.
I was in utter shock Unable to reply. My teachers response Silenced me into submission.
3 Years later My silence was transformed Into an invigorating voice
No one could quell. In 1995 at the age of 14 My eyes were opened further When I went to the movies to see Panther Directed by Mario Van Peebbles.
Like Malcolm X I didn't know Huey P. Newton And the Black Panther Party existed.
Ironically This unknown Made sense out of everything I was previously taught It pieced together: Why Rosa Parks refused to leave her seat Why Jackie Robinson was commended Why Harriet Tubman Freed slaves And the reason behind Martin Luther King's dream.
Although it wasn't Black History Month I couldn't wait until I went to school the following Monday So I could ask my History teacher about The Black Panther Party. I assumed Because I was no longer in elementary school My Junior high school teacher would answer my inquiry, right? WRONG! I received the same response. This time around I refused to remain silent. I responded in an authoritative manner Demanding to be taught about those who weren't written in our schools history books. Not just during Black History Month, but all year long.
That day was the 1st time I was suspended from school For 'challenging' an educator. It definitely wasn't the last, for years to come. I was determined to Obstruct:
"Philosophers have long conceded... that every man has two educations: that which is given to him, and the other that which he gives himself. Of the two kinds the latter is by far the more desirable. Indeed all that is most worthy in man he must work out and conquer for himself. It is that which constitutes our real and best nourishment. What we are merely taught seldom nourishes the mind like that which we teach ourselves."
What formal education refused to provide I spent countless hours cultivating my mind At various libraries, teaching myself. Slowly opening my visions circumference.
In February of 2001 at the age of 20 I was bestowed with good fortune to have met And had an in depth discussion with S.E. Anderson, the author of:
Conversing with S.E. Anderson
Coupled with the content I absorbed from his book My eyes were opened Conclusively.
A week later
In the course of my internship
At Teen Talk Radio.
I was given the opportunity
To read the following poem during Black History Month Live on the air:
Unspoken Truth
"Free at last, Free at last,
Thank God almighty
We are free at last"
Martin Luther King, had a dream
The speech he delivered, Gave inspiration and gleam
But to know one’s history, What would those lines
Really mean:
We’ll we ever be free
Because if we were, In this land ,We wouldn’t be
Crossed over by sea, In chains
Beaten and tormented, stripped to shame
Taken to plains and fields
Wondering where we came from
Ever exist - No longer real
Watching our people, Get slaughtered and killed
Was our pain
How you stripped us of our name
Culture and dignity
You made us into slaves, The lowest of living things
Inherent pangs
Giving birth to their children, Still being enslaved
At the tender age of three
As long as they could walk, That’s all massa could see
For to them we went nothing
We were less then human beings
Through the Atlantic Slave Trade, Millions of my people died
For hundreds of years, It is only my people who have cried
The poem above was written 10 years ago
Until this day
I continuously nourish my mind
Striving to insight the appetite of inquiry
In the minds others.
Never losing sight of:
"The events which transpired five thousand years ago; Five years ago or five minutes ago, have determined what will happen five minutes from now; five years from now or five thousands years from now. All history is a current event" ~*Dr. John Henrik Clarke
