Black History: It's Not Just for February

Darryl Byrd

Far too often, Sekou Molefi Baako has been approached on the eve of a major history exam by a panicky student poised with important questions such as "did Harriet Tubman's Underground Railroad include the 'A' Train,' and did it stop at 125th Street in Harlem ?"

There was a time when confusing Tubman's slavery escape route with Duke Ellington's trademark song might give Baako a laugh, but not anymore. Baako, executive director of Langston Hughes Community Library in Corona , NY , says there is disconnectedness," with our history and events in history."

History, by most definitions, is a record of events in the life or development of a people or an institution. When it comes to the history of the United States , the people referenced have historically been of European descent.

Thumb through most history textbooks and that observation is all too apparent. The Black history timeline begins in shackles, and over the course of more than 400 years of forced residence in the United States , it would appear that only Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, George Washington Carver, Booker T. Washington, Martin Luther King Jr., and a handful of jocks have ever accomplished anything worthy of note.

At best, African-American history has received short shrift. At worst, the contributions of Blacks, save for slavery, have been mostly ignored.

Somewhere between picking cotton and dunking basketballs, the contributions of Black Americans need to be recorded and shared.

The history of African Americans, however, is not separate from what we call American History. As Joan Potter and Constance Claytor contend in their book, African Americans Who Were First (Cobblehill Books, 1997), "to have a complete picture of the history of our country we must understand the role played by all the people who helped create it."

African Americans have shaped and changed the history of this nation.

No one needs to know this more than today's African-American children. A grasp of one's history helps Black kids stand tall in the knowledge of who and what they can be.

Says Joy Hakim, author of more than 25 history books, including a 10-volume collection of U.S. history, A History of Us (Oxford University Press Children's Books, $153.45 paperback), puts it: "A child without history is like an amnesiac -- he has no basis for making rational judgments."

Here's how to how to make Black history a part everyday of your child's life.

Study and share what you learn

Trying to teach children Black history may intimidate some parents because their own knowledge of the subject may be lacking, says Chalmer E. Thompson, associate professor and Director of Training of Counseling Psychology at Indiana University in Bloomington . "A great way to start for all parents -- those who have little experience or a great deal of it -- is to learn this history yourself, says Thompson, who in the past year has created the Heritage School Project, which employs members of the Bloomington community to teach children of color about their racial and cultural heritage. " As you learn, talk to your children about the sorts of things you've been reading about."

To engage a child's natural curiosity and broaden his horizons about his heritage, parents can emphasize the STORY in history.

This is particularly effective with younger children. Introduce them to people and events early on, fleshing out facts as the child matures.

Because the history of African Americans is littered with more tragic chapters than most -- slavery, lynchings, segregation, Jim Crow laws, etc. -- parents should be sensitive to the manner in which they expose their children to the darker aspects of the past.

Be careful not to polarize your children needlessly. With slavery, for instance, What Your Kindergartner Needs to Know (Doubleday, 1996) suggests parents explain to young children that Blacks were once forced to work without rest in the hot sun picking cotton under threat of the whip.

Save the seedier elements of racism, rape, and miscegenation for later years.

"Parents need to understand that children see the world through a different lens than they do," Hakim says. "They have not yet learned to hate, or to be bitter, or cynical. Don't rush the process. Most children before high school age are not racists. Let's try to learn from them."

Feed your family some heritage with supper

A recent survey conducted by Kraft Foods, Inc. and Yankelovich Partners found that 44 percent of families learn about their heritage during meals. One woman who responded to the survey said her family plays "Family Trivia" during dinner. Each person is asked a question about a family member such as "How did mom and dad first meet?" African-American families might ask different questions: "How did grandfather survive segregation?" It provides another opportunity for the families to not only learn about one another but about Black history.

Put family photographs to use

Says Thompson: "younger children especially are quite pleased to hear about stories when their mothers or fathers were young children and the people who were important to them." If a picture is worth a thousand words, photographs of your family will speak volumes about your own heritage.

"Point out the heroes and 'sheroes' in the family," Thompson says, "or simply talk with your children about what life was like for a great-aunt or great-great grandparent."

Make extended family gatherings Black history specials

One of the best ways to learn Black history is to start with your family history. Tap the richness of experiences that grandparents and older relatives have had.

"History is a family subject, a place where Mom, Dad, and the grandparents can all learn together," Hakim says. "We all have family stories and we should take pride in them."

At family gatherings, parents should encourage their children to engage grandma in discussions about segregation. What was it like to ride in the back of the bus? Did it make you upset when you had to drink from a different water fountain? Ask about Black schools during segregation. Discuss the civil rights movement and her feelings and emotions about the swelling pride stirred by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Even the best history books cannot compete with personal experience related with passion by a loved one. Encourage your child to solicit experiences from extended family members to fold into history reports relating to events significant to Blacks.

Fold a little Black history into your child's bedtime story

Who says the learning has to stop once your child climbs into her princess bed?

There are many books that a parent can introduce to their children that touch on historical topics directly, or lead to discussions about history, Thompson says. Parents can choose titles that include the interest areas of their children. "For example, a child with an interest in ballet might enjoy the book 'Amazing Grace,' and become engaged in a discussion following this story about African-American dancers," she says. "It's also worth noting that the use of books can also inspire reading interest."

Surf the Web

In recent years, as the World Wide Web has become part of American culture, it has trapped much of the richness of African Americana in pictures, documents, and sounds, thereby offering enlightenment to both the serious researcher and the casual trivia buff.

Surf the Web with your children. As you find interesting sites with interesting tidbits take time-out for discussion. On the web you might learn that Dr. Carter G. Woodson, noted African-American scholar, established Negro History Week in 1926, which evolved into Black History Month, or that the Works Projects Administration allowed many Blacks to find work during the Franklin Delano Roosevelt presidency.

All you have to do is use a search engine (a program that uses keywords to sift through the millions of documents on the Internet) such as Northern Light (www.northernlight.com) and type in "black history."

Many websites are organized and operated by universities with vast holdings of African-American art, literature and materials related to slavery.

At the John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African- American Documentation, for instance, you can read rare writings. These include an 1857 letter from Vilet Lester, a slave on a North Carolina plantation, and several letters from Hannah Valentine and Lethe Jackson, slaves on the estate of David Campbell, a governor of Virginia . Franklin -- one of the eminent scholars on Black history -- organized the site.

Sources such as these bring history to life. Archival history, such as film clips or sound bites from speeches made by King and other famous Black orators, help makes the Internet a powerful tool for teaching Black history.

Buy some resources

Sharing Black history everyday need not be a struggle. Today, more than ever, resources abound that not only unearth our buried past, but package it in such a shiny package that even your Computer Age child can keep his eye on the prize.

To get you started, here are four resources to make Black history an adventure for you and your children.

Black Americans of Achievement
Board Game
Ages 5 and up
$19.95
Available: LittleAfrica.com

This game presents positive African-American role models. Played by Americans of all ages, the game heightens awareness of the resourcefulness, imagination, and determination of the men and women who have helped define the success-filled heritage of African Americans. Learn important facts and fascinating details about the history of this great nation.

Black Quest: The Griot
IBM PC-compatible CD-ROM
$29.99
Ages 5 and up
Available: Blackquest.com or by mail: Send check or money order for $29.99, payable to: REDISCOVERY LEARNING WORKS, INC., P.O. Box 443, Bladensburg, Maryland 20710-0443

Created by C. Arthur Blair, this educational computer game brings Black history into the Computer Age. Presented as multiple choice and true and false questions, Black Quest features Black achievements and contributions that span the African-American experience from 1492 to 1996, including important events from the American history: the American Revolution, the Civil War, Reconstruction, the Civil Rights Movement. The game also includes contributions Blacks have made to the world of art, entertainment, science, and sports.

How Sweet the Sound: African-American Songs for Children.
Book and cassette.
$9.95
Ages 3 to 8
Available at bookstores, or click on the cover below to order online

Selected by Wade and Cheryl Hudson, this illustrated song collection takes the reader and listener on a musical journey through African-American history. The soft, ethereal pictures by award-winning illustrator Floyd Cooper, meld perfectly with the more than 60 minutes of music, which include chestnuts such as Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing, Take the "A" Train, and Get on Board, Little Children.

Portraits of African American History
Puzzle
$9.95
Ages 7 and up
Available: online at W. B. Adams Puzzles or Phone: (877) WBA-DAMS Toll-Free. State that this is an Internet order. If paying by check or money order (made payable to WB Adams Puzzles) and send to: WB Adams Puzzles, Inc. 4548 Market Street Philadelphia , Pennsylvania 19139 .

This elegant 300-piece puzzle features portraits of African-American heroes including Martin Luther King Jr., George Washington Carver, Frederick Douglas, Malcolm X, Mary McCloud Bethune, and Soujner Truth. Completed, the puzzle lays 14" x 18."

These are only a few things you can do to focus your child's attention on the accomplishments of Black Americans. Learning is the important thing.

Teach Black history with passion, conviction, and candor. Teach it because it is their history.

"The Black heritage, with its African roots, is a badge of pride and an incentive to action," writes Richard Newman, in the introduction to Timelines of African-American History (Perigree, $16.95). "It is a celebration of the long struggle of Black people for freedom in this country, a struggle with many triumphs, but one which is not yet over."

John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African-American Documentation - http://odyssey.lib.duke.edu/franklin
LittleAfrica.com - http://www.littleafrica.com/achievement
Blackquest.com - http://Blackquest.com
W. B. Adams Puzzles - http://www.wbadamspuzzles.com/

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