Thank you for your thoughtful response. The difference, to my mind, between the immigrant groups you mentioned and the black population is in large part the circumstances by which they came to north America, and their conditions once here. Africans were kidnapped, brought here against their will, forced to serve masters, for many genera…
Thank you for your thoughtful response. The difference, to my mind, between the immigrant groups you mentioned and the black population is in large part the circumstances by which they came to north America, and their conditions once here. Africans were kidnapped, brought here against their will, forced to serve masters, for many generations. People bought and sold. While other ethnicities, who for the most part came here voluntarily, faced discrimination, they were not subjected to the same inescapable circumstance as slavery, and later Jim Crow.
And no, none of us living today are responsible for slavery, or own slaves. But we are all inheritors of our mutual past as a nation and live with its consequences. What harm can come from bringing it to light, other than maybe some transient discomfort? I do not advocate national psychoanalysis, but I do advocate for historical truth in our classrooms, which includes both the good and the bad. It really won't bite. It's what a great nation, seeking to be more perfect, might do.
Thank you for your thoughtful response. The difference, to my mind, between the immigrant groups you mentioned and the black population is in large part the circumstances by which they came to north America, and their conditions once here. Africans were kidnapped, brought here against their will, forced to serve masters, for many generations. People bought and sold. While other ethnicities, who for the most part came here voluntarily, faced discrimination, they were not subjected to the same inescapable circumstance as slavery, and later Jim Crow.
And no, none of us living today are responsible for slavery, or own slaves. But we are all inheritors of our mutual past as a nation and live with its consequences. What harm can come from bringing it to light, other than maybe some transient discomfort? I do not advocate national psychoanalysis, but I do advocate for historical truth in our classrooms, which includes both the good and the bad. It really won't bite. It's what a great nation, seeking to be more perfect, might do.