James Baldwin recognized in “Take Me to the Water” that Children attempting to get an education, in a country in which education is a synonym for indoctrination if you are white and subjugation if you’re black [1] that we should be conscious of what is taking place in our school system.  As an African American in America, I personally know the above quote continues to be true.  We continue to see an attack against diversity, equity, and inclusion within our school and university system, which validates Baldwin’s idea.  The more education we have, the more we realize the subjugation of our people, our history, and the inequitable transfer of OUR greatness in historical terms. If a group is continuously told that they are less, then at some point, they will begin to believe it. 

Our history didn’t start with slavery but that is how it is often depicted in American literature. The removal of books that tell the true history of Africans and African Americans, which is currently taking place in Florida and Texas is but one way to attempt to change the narrative.  Removing books written by African American authors about the African American experience is just another attempt to subjugate or remove any contributions we have made to a society that often doesn’t value us. As Jane Elliot, an educator and ally, states, “Education in this country is about how to maintain the status quo and to perpetuate racism.[2]”

Education is not just about reading, writing and math, it Includes the arts.  When we look at the Arts, we must discuss the Harlem Renaissance as it was an act not only of art but one of resistance.  Baldwin, born during the Renaissance, was a literary force to be reckoned with as he called out the injustices that continue to impact our communities today. Since our ancestors were disregarded as artists, musicians, authors, and poets they had to create a space that would allow them free expression without fear of retaliation.  Those Africans who were stolen from their home continent brought with them music, art, dance, and other artistic expressions, including storytelling.

The literary contributions by Baldwin, Maya Angelou, W.E.B. DuBois, and others document the continued struggle that African Americans have in American society.  Education is but one way to transfer ideologies into groups and society.  An old African proverb states, “Until the lion learns how to write, every story will glorify the hunter.” [3] Literature is the art of truth telling, it allows us freedom to express our inner most thoughts and it’s something no one no matter their position can take away from us.

It is important to fight for the continued documentation of our history in America.  Our experiences have been documented by scholars/artists, which are currently under attack.  If we allow our greatness to be erased, we may fall for the ideal that we are from a continent and a group that is “less than” others.  Literature is a way to continue to share our greatness, our history, and our story!

Black History Month, which initially began as a week, is the time for us to display to the world our illustriousness history, our ability to overcome, our continued struggle for equity, and the reality that we will not be moved. As descendants of those who were forcefully removed from their homes, brought to a strange country, and enslaved, we owe it to our youth to document our truth, to share our history, and to fight for our stories to be told by the US in whatever method that looks like.

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[1] https://sites.nd.edu/jamesbaldwin/2021/04/#:~:text=In%20%E2%80%9CTake%20Me%20to%20the,in%20light%20of%20another%20point

[2] https://www.azquotes.com/author/29717-Jane_Elliott

[3] Luvvie Ajayi,