Power of the Past

   Growing up as a child in mid-Texas I didn’t know about racism, at least not until my teens. We had always lived with blacks, Hispanics, and whites in our neighborhoods and schools. We kids were friends regardless of color.

   In our junior high (we had that for grades 7 to 9) things changed. A local school was closed. The students were to be bused to our school. Most of these new students were black. Not a problem.

Dystopos flickr.com

   We all had to adjust, them to this new school and all of us to a new set of kids. As I said we were already an interracial school, so that was an advantage. But I remember some of the new students were unhappy with the new arrangement. Some had negative attitudes, some were trouble-makers, inciting arguments. Now I see they were just testing us, in their attempts to adjust.

   I had always been a shy withdrawn child. Only until well past my teens did I get out of that shell somewhat. But back then I kept to myself and was passive. I didn’t understand the behavior and attitudes of the new students. What was the problem? Apparently the teachers took notice and some even addressed it straight up in classes. Even in classes having nothing to do with racial tensions, like English class.

   My English teacher helped start a conversation. I do not remember the specifics unfortunately. But I remember learning valuable lessons. The new students started talking about their expectations of resentment from us. They knew what it was like to have others be prejudice against them. There was some discussion of history about slavery.

   For the life of me, I don’t remember schools ever teaching us the truth about slavery. Or about how Indigenous People/Native Americans, had their lands and their lives violently taken away from them. It was always one-sided, that they killed whites.

   Oh sure, we were taught that Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492. Only that was a lie. He never set foot in North America. He was in South and Central America and the islands in the Caribbean. There he slaughtered natives, and enslaved them. All in his quest for riches and to find more land to conquer. (1)

   Now let me say I am glad to be an American. I believe in the constitution and our values. But the truth is necessary in order to keep us from repeating mistakes. We were not always, maybe never, entirely a good, respectful nation.

   We didn’t start out this country with human rights in mind. Those who manipulated Native Americans out of treaties, and worse, killed them, justified it by pretending these people weren’t equal to themselves.(2) 

   And thus the behaviors continued, adding more black people as slaves.

   Over and over the white conquerors were feeding into the early consciousness of this nation that some humans were sub-beings. Generation after generation taught the mindset of putting oneself above others. At any cost. Even the cost of a civil war.

   And even after that war, though slaves were set “free,” many whites did not let go of their own prejudices and beliefs. They kept a grip on them. Fighting simply continued in other areas: socio-economic, education, ownership of land, voting. And in lack of law and order, such as lynchings.

Ted Eytan  flickr.com

   Some people today question the validity of a black person bringing up the issues of past treatment. They say there is no slavery, no discrimination now, why act like a victim? But clearly there is an issue. Discrimination is still in the mindset of people today.

   We are raised to believe certain things. We have not been taught to experience equality, because we have not been taught the truth about our nation’s history. Without knowing the truth and confronting the truth, we are not a nation of equality, nor one allowing others to seek “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” for all.

   What about the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness for the Native Americans/Indigenous People? What about the blacks forced into slavery just a few generations ago? Or even the American Japanese who were forced into internment camps between 1942-1946?

   This sounds so familiar. Because this continues to be the behaviors even today. Politically, industrially, financially. The top 2 percent owning and running America, with their pursuit of power, money, and land, with many others pushing their way to be just like that, acting as if they are better than others. Treating people as if they don’t matter. As if others are sub-human.

   It is a long, difficult struggle for everyday Americans to fight for America’s values. Too many take it for granted I think. Too many are trapped in their own mindset, not searching, not reaching for the truth.

   Read. Learn. Grow. Don’t stay stuck. Teach.

   Those teachers in my junior high school (so many years ago) noticed a disruption in their classrooms, so they opened up a conversation, and allowed us kids to express and question life as it was happening. Then we learned the truth about our history. Taking the past and the present, we could move forward to change for the better. We must keep teaching.

   I’ve never forgotten the power of a teacher.

 Theresa M




sources:

(1) theguardian.com “In 1492 Columbus sailed…” by Sara Galo 10/13/14
(2) allabouthistory.org/native-american-history and
      britanica.com/topic/Native-American/Native-American-history
(3) britannica.com/event/Japanese-American-internment