For 400 years now Black people in this country have fought to organize and be recognized as first-class citizens. At every turn, many politically-mainstream Whites have responded to such movements with furious denial of the existence of racial inequality.
Yet open up any mainstream K-12 American history textbook, and all the major movements towards Black liberation are held up as courageous expressions of humanity which have advanced the American experiment.
You think MLK was roundly celebrated and praised by White people when he was alive? You think all the White peoples' lips trembled in admiration of Rosa Parks' courage while she was riding in the front of "their" bus?
So if you're spending time fuming about those pesky #blacklivesmatter actions and how much overtime pay it's costing, please also spend some time planning what you'll say to your grandchildren when they ask you what you did during the civil rights movement back in the early 21st century.
Yet open up any mainstream K-12 American history textbook, and all the major movements towards Black liberation are held up as courageous expressions of humanity which have advanced the American experiment.
You think MLK was roundly celebrated and praised by White people when he was alive? You think all the White peoples' lips trembled in admiration of Rosa Parks' courage while she was riding in the front of "their" bus?
So if you're spending time fuming about those pesky #blacklivesmatter actions and how much overtime pay it's costing, please also spend some time planning what you'll say to your grandchildren when they ask you what you did during the civil rights movement back in the early 21st century.
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