African American Ancestral Obligation
Thomas Duval DDS, MPH
Unearthing The Weeping TIME
African Americans (AAs) owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the previous generations’ hopes and efforts to bring a better day of opportunity to the next generation. All AAs owe the responsibility of researching and learning their culture and history so they can inform the future generations to lead a purposeful, moral life of achievement; and give something back to their respective communities. This is the ancestral obligation every African American (AA) should accept and pass on to their children.
AA adults, especially leaders, must accept, learn, and embrace AA culture, art, and history to impart ancestral obligation to motivate AA youth to want to learn! At-risk AA youth need this information to develop positive self-esteem, to know their place in the world, and to be motivated to finish high school. Middle class high achieving AA youth need this knowledge to be inspired to give something back to their AA community. AA history must become an integral accepted part of the authentic history of United States for the continuance of making a more perfect union. At-risk AA targeted educational motivational strategies that do not include ancestral obligation are doomed to failure. American history textbooks and curricula that do not significantly include the contributions of AAs are incomplete and non-authentic.
American history curricula in public schools should be changed for K-4th grades to include the period to the end of the American civil war. AA children should not be introduced to American history when most of their ancestors were slaves. Several studies have shown many if not most at risk AA boys are completely academically turned off to school by the fourth grade. All of our children need to know the ideals of the American Declaration of Independence and the flaw of slavery in the original United States Constitution. Our children need to know how America continued and continues today to make a more perfect union! "Unearthing The Weeping Time" continues the quest for that more perfect union!
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Thomas Duval DDS, MPH
Unearthing The Weeping TIME
African Americans (AAs) owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the previous generations’ hopes and efforts to bring a better day of opportunity to the next generation. All AAs owe the responsibility of researching and learning their culture and history so they can inform the future generations to lead a purposeful, moral life of achievement; and give something back to their respective communities. This is the ancestral obligation every African American (AA) should accept and pass on to their children.
AA adults, especially leaders, must accept, learn, and embrace AA culture, art, and history to impart ancestral obligation to motivate AA youth to want to learn! At-risk AA youth need this information to develop positive self-esteem, to know their place in the world, and to be motivated to finish high school. Middle class high achieving AA youth need this knowledge to be inspired to give something back to their AA community. AA history must become an integral accepted part of the authentic history of United States for the continuance of making a more perfect union. At-risk AA targeted educational motivational strategies that do not include ancestral obligation are doomed to failure. American history textbooks and curricula that do not significantly include the contributions of AAs are incomplete and non-authentic.
American history curricula in public schools should be changed for K-4th grades to include the period to the end of the American civil war. AA children should not be introduced to American history when most of their ancestors were slaves. Several studies have shown many if not most at risk AA boys are completely academically turned off to school by the fourth grade. All of our children need to know the ideals of the American Declaration of Independence and the flaw of slavery in the original United States Constitution. Our children need to know how America continued and continues today to make a more perfect union! "Unearthing The Weeping Time" continues the quest for that more perfect union!