Buried Bones July 2nd Ano dos

 

Buried Bones

I’ve always pursued the question; “Why do people do what people do?”  One can only do this for so long before it becomes evident the history books are written by the victors.

It is understandable that white people have the opinions they do of Black people when one considers what the history books taught them...or didn’t teach them.

It will only be when white people read a new history, written not by them, but by the buried bones of Blacks who have never been allowed to have their story told, that Black LIves Will Matter.

I may be being a little too generous here, but I like to give folks the benefit of the doubt and think they do bad things because the way they understand the situation their actions not only are ok, but morally appropriate.  But that only stands for a time.  Eventually evidence contrary to national narrative becomes so compelling the narrative loses its power to unite and different segments of that culture openly contest it.  This takes place unevenly across society and can be very painful and fraught with risk of civil disintegration.

Our National Narrative (our oral history if you will) is the image we choose and then project to the world.  It is laden and deeply entwined with our religious beliefs.  It is told in a way leaving no uncertainty of our “Manifest Destiny”, that is to say The US was destined by God to expand its borders westward and in the process convert the indiginious tribes.  This type of thinking leaves a lot of skeletons buried in the basement.

The exhuming of these skeletons is painful and absolutely necessary if we are to return to Truth in our narrative and stop lying to ourselves.

What follows is a look at my personal journey through the process of reexamining our history as I understood it and taught it. One can teach only so much history, some things are just left out. When enough things on a certain subject are left out of our history books...that subject disappears and ceases to exist.

Here’s my example;

As a father, as a one-time Sunday school teacher, as a member of the Milford community, as an American, can I teach about the accomplishments and contributions of W.E.B DeBois as I can Helen Keller?

Do I include Watts and LA Riots, but not Tulsa and Wilmington in my pontificating on race in America?

Do I teach that George Washington’s dentures were made of wood and not that he paid 122 shillings to poor slaves in need of money, for their teeth for his dentures?

When I teach of failure to achieve in America, is the picture I use of black teenagers on a ghetto street corner?

When I teach of success in America is the picture of a Black man getting out of a limo on Wall Street?

When I teach of the government providing support for farmers, the unemployed, youth and the elderly through The New Deal,  do I teach about the use of “red-lining”?

When I teach of Tommie Smith raising his fist at the 1968 Olympics medals ceremony, Do I mention he was sent home the next day, stripped of his medals?

When I teach of the need for law and order do I use the example of “black crime” but never lump white criminals together by race?

When I teach of the true cause of the civil war, do I focus on the south’s insistence on “state’s rights” or do I point out slavery was mentioned 80 times in the articles of secession?

When I teach about the responsibilities in writing history, do I point out that being in a position of Privilege empowers me to exclude from history anything inconsistent with my preferred narrative?

When I teach about Racism, do I make clear it is as much a crime of omission as commission?

Teaching is a huge responsibility.

What is taught, how it is taught, how it is acted upon, sets the course of the future of our country, our community, and our children.

We need to do this right, and when we don’t, we need to admit it and correct it.

We are all a teacher to someone.

Bobb aka Poppie