When you think of Africa and its history, what do you think of? How do you view its people and their way of life? Do you think of primitive people with no history who have never built complex civilizations, who never contributed to society, who ran around naked killing and eating each other until the Europeans came and delivered them from their savagery? If you believe in any or all of these things, I don't blame you. In fact most people - black, white or any other race/ethnicity for that matter probably have these same preconceived notions.
When you think of America, it’s violent history and how it came to be, to whom do we owe the credit of it’s existence, its culture and it’s people’s way of life? What is taught to its people about its history and why things are the way they are? What influences most define its culture?
When we talk about systemic racism, what systems exactly are we talking about? In the midst of Nation-wide protest (global in many cases) against police brutality that disproportionately affects black people and the tearing down of monuments and symbols of racial oppression what systems come to mind when considering how to best eliminate systemic oppression? We’re definitely on the right track when we discuss dealing with the criminal justice system. But what other problematic systems contribute to the oppression of black people(And other groups) in this country?
When I was in grade school we learned about many stories and adventures in Europeans history, from the ancient Greeks and ancient Romans to Medieval Europe and the Renaissance. We learned about how Europeans lived and their art forms and how that history ultimately influenced american society. But what about America’s other influences from other groups of people that greatly contributed to this country? I think it’s pretty safe to say that American culture is uniquely different from Europe in many different ways for a number of reasons. So why do we only learn about how how Europeans contributed to this great nation in our public education systems? Why don’t we learn about Africa and it’s contributions to American culture(among other influential groups)? This too is a form of systemic oppression which not only strips Afro-descended people from their histories but also fosters dangerous supremacist ideologies.
When you consider the rich history we learn about Europeans in our grade schools and pair that with what we learn about Black history in America think about what we are teaching our children especially black children. “You were slaves. That is the extent of your history and prior to that you were nothing.” Can you see how such limited representation of African history is damaging? Now don’t get me wrong, the history of slavery should absolutely be taught in our schools, but so should the general history of Africa prior to the transatlantic slave trade and prior to colonialism. By doing this I think we would be doing a great service to the entire world especially considering how america has such a massive global influence. I am not saying this will end racism and I am certainly not saying that this is the only other system of oppression we need to focus on but I think this would have a great impact on how all of us see ourselves as human beings. African history is human history!
The History Of Africa
Now I have been interested in the history of Africa for quite some time now. And I have been digging around the internet for years on the topic. And let me tell you, nothing is a bigger reminder of how much of a mess the internet is than trying to find viable sources on the history of Africa. Anyway, I have done the work so you don’t have to. What I recommend the most is a documentry series by the BBC hosted by Zeinab Badawi called History Of Africa with Zeinab Badawi. And I really hope that you take the time to watch this informative and robust series. It is truly powerful and I know you will thank me for it. Please Watch it! Absolutely everyone should watch it, spread it, share it! The BBC has been wonderful enough to release the entire series completely free of charge on youtube. It is 17 episodes and you can watch it here. I will go ahead and embed the first episode here too just to encourage you to get started.
I think this series is a great starting point for getting details on Africa’s rich history, culture, and civilizations. It gives you the when what where why and how of ancient and precolonial Africa. I just know you will love it as much as I do.
A little Bit About Zeinab Badawi
I have to tell you, Zeinab Badawi became one of my heroes over the couple days of my binge watching her series on Africa. She seems to be a wonderful lady and I encourage you to watch this Ted Talk of her discussing why she decided to work on this series. Please watch it. I know you’ll like her as much as I do.
I think the History of Africa with Zeinab Badawi series and/or the UNESCO General History of Africa Volumes which the series is based on can serve as an excellent guideline for how we can start teaching African History in our public schools. Now the UNESCO General History of Africa Volumes are MASSIVE so obviously it would have to be decided what and how much could actually fit in our public school curriculum. In fact, there is obviously no way Zeinab Badawi’s series was even able to fit everything in those volumes into her series. Her Series is such a quick watch, at least it was for me, so maybe something based off of the series could fit into our history courses. I don’t know, obviously I am just spit balling here. But I think somehow incorporating some African history into our schools curriculum would be a tremendous progress against our systemically racist educational system.
Will you join me in the fight against systemic racism in our public school system?