GREENSBORO, N.C. — On this Juneteenth I take time to reflect on history.
Today is the day commemorating the end of slavery in America.
And here's the thing, growing up I never heard anything about it. It wasn't celebrated much that I knew of in my hometown area in Massachusetts.
It wasn't taught in my school.
I didn't learn about it until 5 years ago when I worked in Waco, Texas and learned of celebrations they held, which makes sense considering Juneteeth stems from General Granger's announcement on June 19th, 1865 that the enslaved in Galveston Texas were free.
I've asked around to my friends and read a lot on social media that this year is the first time they've heard of it.
A big turning point in America's history left out of the majority of history books.
And then, there's the Tulsa massacre in 1921 where an area known as Black Wall Street was burned down by an angry mob.
Two major events thrust into the national spotlight this week.
THIS WEEK in 2020, some people are hearing about them for the very first time.
I think that's sad.
Those two parts of history join a laundry list of Black history that's not always talked about.
You hear a little bit about slavery. Yeah, Abraham Lincoln helped abolish it.
Cool.
Then you have Black History Month and you get a sanitized version of the Civil Rights Movement.
You don't hear about uncomfortable truths, the uncomfortable oppression Black people faced throughout history in this country.
And schools have a responsibility to teach our kids this critical history.
Knowing the true history of this country is important, no matter how hard it is to stomach.
Being familiar with past events gives us the ability to not only learn from those mistakes, but to see how that history is shaping the present.
I think we are doing a disservice to our future generations if we continue to brush hard history under the rug.
If it's not taught in school, let's teach it at home, and let's never forget.
Form your own opinion, that's just my 2 cents.
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