Recovering America’s Democratic Memory “Be true to what you said on paper.”— Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Most Americans know that the Civil War ended slavery. Far fewer know what came next.After four years of war, the United States faced … Continue reading Democracy Under Reconstruction, Again
In 1852, Frederick Douglass stood before an audience in Rochester, New York, and posed a question that continues to echo through American history: “What, to the American slave, is your Fourth of July?” Douglass understood something that remains true today. … Continue reading What, to America, Is the 250th Anniversary?
The Confederacy is often remembered as a failed rebellion that ended with the Civil War in 1865. Militarily, that is true. The Confederate States of America surrendered, its government collapsed, and the Union was preserved. If we are honest about … Continue reading The Burial America Never Held
If the history of the United States were written like a book of the Bible, what would it say about us? Would it speak of a nation wrestling with its own soul. A people proclaiming liberty while struggling to extend … Continue reading The “Book” of America
What if Dr. Carter G. Woodson’s vision had fully come to pass? When he established Negro History Week in 1926, he did not intend to create a permanent observance. His aim was far more ambitious and far more American. Woodson … Continue reading What If Carter G. Woodson’s Vision Had Come True?
This is a serious moment for our country. Not because America lacks promise, but because it is once again being asked to account for it. Across this nation and around the world, frustration, division, and uncertainty feel familiar, even if … Continue reading Are We Living in the Other America?
Reflecting Forward in a New American Future I have spent the past two months standing before the Ohio House Education Committee, offering testimony not for recognition, not for fame, and not for any personal gain, but in the name of … Continue reading America’s Testimony
In honor of Native/Indigenous Heritage Month We must get back to seeing each other. History is the reason for the present, and that is an undeniable fact. We find ourselves in a critical moment where national tensions are high and … Continue reading A Circle Yet to Be Formed
We must call it like we see it, and then we must have the courage to discuss it. Currently, we are experiencing a moment where politics has seeped into American society and begun to affect people in three major ways … Continue reading The Old Rugged Crossroads
Three-Fifths 