Black history deserves to be told, not banned from schools
Tara Green grew up in New Orleans listening to family members tell stories about their roots.
Her father was from Mississippi, so the storytelling was peppered with the harsh experiences of the Deep South. She would listen intently and always had questions. There was so much she wanted to know.
Green, who holds a doctorate and is the founding chair and College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences distinguished professor of University of Houston’s African American Studies department, says searching for answers helped fuel her interest in African American studies and research. She knows without the study of Black history, much is lost in the American landscape.
“We are still grappling with these questions about who we are and our contributions to this country, but we have much more exposure through books and documentaries. Those questions still persist, but we are there to help engage our students,” she said.
Considering that the future is shaped by the past, Black history is not only important, but also crucial to the American story.
Lessons in history are not designed to make folks feel bad, but instead, to teach generations that our nation has come so far but has so far to go: Teach our children that racism and slavery are part of the fabric of this country, but people don’t have to be racist. Teach them that generations of Black men and women made significant contributions to this society and helped shape the world we live in.
These are lessons that should transcend race.
Knowing our past and educating all children about it seems logical. But Black history is under attack.
In April, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis banned the new Advanced Placement course in African American Studies, which is the first new course proposed by the College Board since 2014. The College Board consulted with more than 300 African American Studies professors from more than
200 colleges across the country to develop the course, which was piloted in 60 schools last year.
DeSantis claimed the course, which is designed for high school students earning college credit, violates the state’s “Stop WOKE Act,” which took effect in July. The act bans teaching courses that would make some people feel they are personally responsible for history’s atrocities, based on race, sex and origin.
On Wednesday, the College Board released an official curriculum for the course that deleted Black writers and scholars associated with critical race theory, the queer experience and Black feminism. It added “Black conservatism” as an idea for a research project.
Basically, the board bowed to pressure and, in many ways, sacrificed a more complete Black history.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democratic, tweeted at College Board CEO David Coleman: “I call (expletive) — you are merely a puppet of Ron DeSantis.”
This week, the White House released a proclamation for Black History Month: “The struggles and challenges of the Black American story to make a way out of no way have been the crucible where our resolve to fulfill this vision has most often been tested . ... Black Americans have made a way not only for themselves but also have helped build a highway for millions of women, immigrants, other historically marginalized communities, and all Americans to more fully experience the benefits of our society.”
It’s hard to imagine that an organized effort to erase the history of other marginalized groups would happen in the same manner or with the same political force that’s taking place today.
Book bans add another layer to the attack. Spring Branch Independent School District recently banned New York Times bestselling author Frederick Joseph’s “The Black Friend: On Being a Better White Person” for middle school and put it on a restricted list for high schools, meaning that it is not deemed educationally appropriate.
Dozens of parents and teachers reached out to him in support of the book, which is based on his childhood at a mostly white high school and his personal experiences with racism, Joseph said Wednesday. The board referenced that the book includes critical race theory — which it does not.
“I’m so sick of this,” he said on Twitter, naming the four board members who favored the ban. “No one even knows what CRT is. … ‘The Black Friend’ is about my personal experiences. It’s not a historical book. It’s a personal reflection of my experiences. … I’m not going to let people erase the experiences of Black and brown people without a battle.”
Spring Branch ISD is majority Hispanic and other ethnic groups. Only 27 percent of the district is white.
“I think studying our history has never been more important,” Joseph said in an interview. “We are actively repeating history in a country that is erasing women’s bodily autonomy and erasing the right to vote. How do you get to tell a group of people that their experience and history are not important?”
Joseph also recently published a children’s picture book, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: The Courage to Dream,” with Houston-native Nikkolas Smith, the illustrator who designed “The 1619 Project: Born on the Water” picture book in 2021.
Many Black history lessons resonate with Joseph, but the stories of Black women remain the most significant, he said.
“Black women have been at the epicenter of every movement and have been the backbone of this country,” he said. “When you erase that history, that means the next generation of Black women will not get those opportunities.”
At Fort Bend County ISD, coordinator of community and civic engagement Chassidy Olainu-Alade is conducting a series of Black History Month tours to help educate students about the history and contribution of Black people. Seven of the district’s high schools offer the AP African American Studies course, with about 550 students enrolled in the class.
“Black studies is extremely valuable, considering that representation matters, and students want to learn about their culture and other cultures,” she said. “We are part of this American story.”
Banning African American Studies and books sends the wrong message to students.
“It minimizes our culture and the importance and relevancy of a history and a culture and reaffirms all of those beliefs that Black history is not important,” she said.
Those who are not Black learn about a rich culture.
Those who are Black hold their heads up higher and speak with pride about the lessons they learn. They also realize they are their ancestors’ hopes and dreams.