Stop Whitewashing History.

White guilt should not stop us from teaching children the truth about what happened. It is important to teach what happened so we do not make the same mistakes again. That is really the whole point of history class. African Americans have faced centuries of oppression, and you can still see that in some aspects of life today. It is important to teach kids what actually occurred accurately; it is imperative that we tell children the full story, allowing them to learn from right and wrong and allow them to gain the knowledge of what our ancestors contributed to the building of not only this country but the world.  

Are we living up to the creed of America if we erase people’s history (the good & the bad)? It is important to teach children what actually occurred in history. In order for us to develop as good functioning humans in society we need to know what happened in the past. Teaching children history empowers them, gives them self-respect and pride. History allows us to not only understand who we are and where we came from, but we are able to understand other people as well. Some kids will never get the chance to be exposed to different cultures, and stripping away the richness of history in the classroom will only stunt their growth. They will not be able to develop and become well-rounded human beings. They will be stuck to a closed off mindset for the rest of their lives. How will this lead to the growth of our nation? 

Teaching children about what occurred in history is an important lesson about what is right and what is wrong. The Transatlantic Slave Trade is not something you just get to skip over in history. This is essentially what America’s economy was built off of, and it is the basis of all the racism seen in this country. Racism that was combated by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and many others, during the Civil Rights Movement and beyond. Removing this from the education system is never going to be beneficial to students. Children need to understand that black and white people have not always been equal, and in many ways are still not. Let’s be real for a second… children are not feeling guilty for what has happened in the past. They are old enough to know that they had nothing to do with it, but they are also old enough to know it is wrong. They need to know about what happened in the past so these actions are never repeated again. There will be no growth if we do not know where we came from. 

It is important for children to know where they came from, and that includes teaching them about the good and the bad. It is empowering to know where you came from, and for a lot of people, this journey starts in history class. Cultures deserved to be recognized and celebrated. Students deserve to be exposed to new things that they would never be able to experience otherwise. History is rich, and it is something that is a key foundation in the American school system. 

Children need to understand what actually occurred; it is imperative that we tell children the full story, allowing them to learn from right and wrong and gain the knowledge of what our ancestors contributed to the building of not only this country but the world.“The policies that were considered last year changed many times, but the final version would have prohibited school leaders from compelling adherence to concepts such as one race being inherently morally or intellectually superior to another. Or, that an individual’s moral character is determined by their race. Proponents said the bill will prevent the indoctrination of “critical race theory.” Critics said its actual effect would be to chill classroom discussions about race”  (McElhinny  2023). Discussions about race have never been chill, and they should never be. Hundreds of years of torment and oppression are not “chill”.  We are all Americans; therefore, we cannot dismiss anyone’s history and have an accurate account of who we Americans are and how we came to be Americans. We have to teach students history, because where would we be without it?