Black History is Everyone’s History
Black History is not something we should only remember in February.
It is a part of American history, and everyone should embrace African American culture, as well as how different groups of people stood up to fight for equality.
Scenes of protesters withstanding police attacks, like in the movie Selma, made me feel proud because they had the courage to face a system attempting to hold them down.
In the movie, Dr. King left Selma, Alabama to return to his wife and children at home.
A small group of African Americans who were touched by a speech delivered by King at a community church decided to peacefully assemble in the streets at night.
Amongst them was a man named Jimmie Lee Jackson, who was inspired by what King said.
During the protest, law enforcement brutally attacked the crowd. They viciously beat men and women, regardless of age and size.
Jackson helped lift his mother after she fell onto the ground and he escorted his family as fast as he could out of danger.
A cop saw them trying to escape and followed them to a Black-owned restaurant, where the cop pursued and began to beat Jackson’s grandfather and mother.
Jackson while trying to defend his family, was shot in the chest by the cop.
This angered Dr. King and fueled his reason for holding the march to Selma.
Events during the Civil Rights movement greatly affected the shape America has taken now.
Since then, American citizens have been known to peacefully assemble and voice their opinion to not just America, but the world.
Chicanos, gays, lesbians, students, the elderly, and many more have been put down for protesting laws they feel to be unconstitutional.
Protests for gay marriage, abortion rights, and police brutality in cases like Trayvon Martin, Mike Brown, and Eric Gardner are held today.
This would not have been attainable if not for everyone coming together for one cause. That unification, known as the Civil Rights Movement, taught us how it’s properly done.
We must always keep in mind that our country would not be what it is today if not for the brave souls, many who weren’t African American, that stood regardless of the repercussions, to stand up for what was right: equality and justice for all.
That is what Black History continues to teach.
Do not restrict centuries of life into one of the shortest months of the year. Choose not to honor one man or woman, but the thousands who risked their lives.
Practice the main themes of what the marches and the protests meant year-round. Reflect and remember the meaning of speeches of the Civil Rights era: freedom, equality, justice, truth, hope and faith in your government and mankind.
That alone is the repeating mantra of what Black History is all about.
