by Rev. Dr. George A. Bates, JD

It is quite baffling that many States and school districts do not want to teach anything about American slavery.  One of my college classmates told me recently that in Texas, no teacher can mention the word. Despite the horrors of that “peculiar institution” that the United States fought a Civil War to abolish, the diabolical ravages of this system still exist to this day.  The 13^th Amendment of the U. S. Constitution still allows it if you are confined to a state penitentiary.  This explains the legacy of the ill-treatment of mostly black prisoners in our state prisons.  The recent beating to death of a black prisoner in the State of New York recently explains the robust health of this practice that seemingly is not hiding its existence!  This N. Y. State correctional officers filmed the beating on their shoulder cams.

You would think that if the U. S. is serious about eradicating all of the deprivations and violence accorded certain persons of color because of their race, they would want to teach how this system was erected, maintained and defended in the 400 year existence of this country!  Racism, sexism, xenophobia and all forms of prejudice should be “outed” just like we did with alcoholism, drunk driving, drug use, etc.: we launched a national campaign to identify the signs, detail the devastating effects and to promote treatment of these social ills.  With massive education on the lethal effects of drunk driving and illicit drug use, we have put up a valiant fight against these ills.  With the rise of the opiod epidemic, there is a constant reminder that our fight is on-going and seemingly endless—as we quash one “craze”, another one pops up!

However, with the devastating effects of racism and sexism this nation is going “mum”.  Are we afraid that if we teach our children the “truth” of the history of racial prejudice and the violence and devastation it produces for “people of color” that they will see a correlation in the present day treatment of minority communities?  Are we afraid that our children will see that the diabolical practices of the past are still very much with us in every corner of our society? Will they see that their seemingly quaint and serene society has many contradictions? Will they see the duplicity and hypocrisy of their community that some whites can enjoy wonderfully staffed and modern schools, hospitals, libraries, housing subdivisions and a big chunk of their black, Latino and Native American classmates across town live in abject poverty struggling to eat a decent meal every day? Are the advocates of anti-multicultural education in our public and private schools really afraid of damaging their child’s well-being by teaching them the truth about America’s seemy, nasty and dirty histrionics of racial prejudice that has led to just as much racial violence as that of South Africa?

Do we want our children to mature into a society with blinders on about the effects of premarital sex, illicit drug and alcohol abuse? Of course not! Do we want our children to live without empathy for “the have nots” in our society and have no compassion for the poor and bereft among us? Do you think growing up in America without any heart-felt sympathy for others less-well-off than yourself played a tiny part in any of the violent mass murders committed by a growing list of teenagers in this country?  Is white America really trying to put blinders on their children to deny, ignore and explain away the deplorable facts of life for millions of American citizens like their fore-parents did?  Is this continuing practice of white-washing America’s history a vale attempt to maintain some form of white dominance in this rainbow world?  Do they really think that if their children do not know about these social ills formally, they are “better off” personally and somehow immune to these social diseases?

When I was an interim dean at a major university, I use to pray for the unsuspecting students entering a setting with students from around the world from all walks of life!  Many of their parents were sending their “baby” adults into the “lions dens” of America with very little knowledge of the risks surrounding them?  What parent wants their children to be so sheltered from reality that they are “at risk” upon entry into the arena of life?  When I hear of a white parent allowing their child to visit a foreign country by themselves, I mutter “what fools these mortals be!” The legendary Ruby Bridges remarked recently now that she is a grandmother, “why would any parent want their children to grow up in a “cocoon” knowing that they cannot stay there forever?” 

Now, I got a ‘bone to pick’ with black parents as well!  Why would you support black entertainers, athletes and black stars by buying their shoes, clothing, accessories and perfumes and what not when most of them are not doing anything to protect the health and well-being of your child? These black millionaires and billionaires are mostly immune from the ills of nearly 60 percent of the black community—they have the best in homes, cars, clothing, health care, education for their children but they are not doing anything to alleviate the ills plaguing black America! Why would a black parent pay or allow their children to pay hundreds of dollars to see a concert, or buy a pair of shoes or watch an athletic contest when that same child maybe living in poverty and has a bleak future?  Black America has to demand more of its own people who are also profiting off their misguidance and ignorance!