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Y& #39;all all know I& #39;m black. I& #39;ve been taught that I was public enemy number 1. I spent a loooot of time around white folk during my schooling.
I could never understand why I couldn& #39;t do what they did, but I& #39;m getting off topic.
We were in an English class.
I could never understand why I couldn& #39;t do what they did, but I& #39;m getting off topic.
We were in an English class.
Our teacher (Black) had given us... Huck-Finn to read? It was before Huck Finn I think.
The conversation led to him guiding us about race. I don& #39;t remember what was talked about... But there was one prominent memory that has stuck with me to this day. (CW/Slur)
The conversation led to him guiding us about race. I don& #39;t remember what was talked about... But there was one prominent memory that has stuck with me to this day. (CW/Slur)
Silently, my teacher wrote the word "NIGGER" big on the white board. He turned to the class and asked us "What does this word mean to you?"
The whole damn class was silent as death.
The whole damn class was silent as death.
The teacher KNEW that this was an uncomfortable subject. So he facilitated us, by asking follow up questions. "Where have you seen this word used? What does it mean? Why is it considered bad?"
I don& #39;t remember what was said, but slowly, but surely, the class started talking.
I don& #39;t remember what was said, but slowly, but surely, the class started talking.
People said it was a racial slur. A term of endearment. A bad word. A word owned by black people. Don& #39;t say the hard "R".
And in time... I realized how quickly white students understood WHY this word was such a taboo and why it& #39;s so uncomfortable.
And in time... I realized how quickly white students understood WHY this word was such a taboo and why it& #39;s so uncomfortable.
Racism is never something you& #39;re born with. You& #39;re either ignorant of it, or deliberately taught to be it.
What does this have to do with cultural teaching?
Quite a lot actually.
What does this have to do with cultural teaching?
Quite a lot actually.
Black people have been raised to "know their place" in the United States-- and that place is at the bottom. Black parents frequently have to tell black kids what they can and can& #39;t do in this society.
As stated before, I was informed I was "Public Enemy #1". Black male.
As stated before, I was informed I was "Public Enemy #1". Black male.
That& #39;s not to discredit black women and their strife, but from what we see often, black males are treated as the common criminals of US society.
White people who are ignorant get an image of black males being "delinquents" , but they never question WHY.
White people who are ignorant get an image of black males being "delinquents" , but they never question WHY.
At a young age, unless you have a great teacher or parents that are on top of educating youth about the disparity between PoC and Non-PoC, white people do not know the strife of African Americans.
That could be because of 3 reasons:
That could be because of 3 reasons:
1. They don& #39;t know because they were never subjected to racial micro/macroaggressions
2. They don& #39;t know because they do not want to know or do not care.
3. They do know, but they& #39;re just racist.
Chances are, when a kid is 10 - 14, it& #39;s either reason #1 or #2.
2. They don& #39;t know because they do not want to know or do not care.
3. They do know, but they& #39;re just racist.
Chances are, when a kid is 10 - 14, it& #39;s either reason #1 or #2.
This gets into the HARD conversation about race.
White people... You have benefited from centuries of free labor, decades of economic shifting in your favor, and suffered no consequences for that. If you acknowledge that... How do you tell your kid the same thing?
White people... You have benefited from centuries of free labor, decades of economic shifting in your favor, and suffered no consequences for that. If you acknowledge that... How do you tell your kid the same thing?
Many white parents are very uncomfortable when it comes to talking about African American history. The easiest way of talking about it is "Black people used to be slaves, but Harriett Luther Parks helped liberate them!"
But that& #39;s a gross oversimplification.
But that& #39;s a gross oversimplification.
Our history is chock full of unjust deaths, torture, assault and mistreatment. There are so many stories of black people who have been so grossly mistreated by this system, you& #39;d think we& #39;d be broken and extinct by now.
But we ain& #39;t.
Which means YOU gotta teach ya kids.
But we ain& #39;t.
Which means YOU gotta teach ya kids.
But this isn& #39;t JUST parents. It& #39;s teachers too. School districts. A majority of teachers in America are white, middle class women. (77% in 2012 if you wanna get technical https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2017/08/15/the-nations-teaching-force-is-still-mostly.html)">https://www.edweek.org/ew/articl...
Compare this statistic to the amount of black teachers are in the US.
20% are black... but 2% are black and male.
How on earth can you teach a 70-80% black classroom about black culture when you have more white teachers than black teachers?
20% are black... but 2% are black and male.
How on earth can you teach a 70-80% black classroom about black culture when you have more white teachers than black teachers?
There are a lot of white teachers placed in predominantly black schools where they cannot relate to the students, which creates a discrepancy in teaching culturally.
A white teacher is more likely comfortable talking about race in terms of Harriett Luther Parks than Nat Turner.
A white teacher is more likely comfortable talking about race in terms of Harriett Luther Parks than Nat Turner.
The reason why I remembered my own teacher& #39;s incredible lesson wasn& #39;t just because he was a black teacher...
It was because he led the lesson by acknowledging the discomfort but pushing through with the conversation anyway. The truth hurt, but we all learned better from it.
It was because he led the lesson by acknowledging the discomfort but pushing through with the conversation anyway. The truth hurt, but we all learned better from it.
This is why it& #39;s important that not only parents, but TEACHERS need to open up their minds and truly start delving into black history. Not for the sake of brown kids, but for the white kids too. They need to know their TRUE history just as much as we do ours.
This is what I mean by being culturally educated. If you learn the WHY things are, you become more aware of why things happen, how they got this way, and in turn, become more sensitive to a person& #39;s culture.
It completely solves 2 of the 3 reasons I listed above.
It completely solves 2 of the 3 reasons I listed above.
That is not to say that there will still exist racists that will hate regardless of what you say.
But now, the very least you can do is be real with your kids/students. Don& #39;t water down our history. They will recover, and in turn, they will learn to stand with us.
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But now, the very least you can do is be real with your kids/students. Don& #39;t water down our history. They will recover, and in turn, they will learn to stand with us.
