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Showing posts from January, 2017

The Declaration of Independence vs. The Declaration of the Rights of Man

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The full texts of the DOI and DORM Credit: Teachers Pay Teachers Imagine for a moment that you are back in elementary school – kindergarten to be exact. It’s playtime. Another opportunity to just forget about the goldfish back at home swimming in circles and taunting you daily to reach in and stop him every now and then, the annoying sister who is constantly blaming you for everything that goes wrong with her life, the flustered parents who simply cannot just leave you alone when you don’t want to eat your porridge, the looming teachers who could care less whether you’re actually having fun but will always find an excuse to stop you for the slightest grin. Yes, it is that time again. The playground…the calm and peaceful playground. The FUUUUN playground!! You rush to the infamous hangout spot which you have been scurrying off to since the very first time you laid eyes on it – none other than The Sandbox. Today is another day in the sand. You brought your toys and you are rea...

American Slavery and Modern Black Sexuality

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(This is a re-publication. The original 2/25/16 article can be found here: https://americandreamclass.wordpress.com/2016/02/25/slavery-and-modern-black-sexuality/ ) Would you say that… Slavery has a profound impact on modern black sexuality or Slavery has little to no impact on modern black sexuality? I believe that slavery certainly has had a profound impact on modern black sexuality. During the slavery era, black people were reduced to objects – cargo (“goods”), tools (physical workers and bodies for sexual satisfaction), and literal scapegoats for the source of all evils imaginable. These concepts were enforced by the law and promoted by literature. However, they were also accentuated in the primitive media of the time as racist propaganda. We can see how black men, women, and children were referred to as “brutes”, “savages”, “animals”, “picaninnies”, and “niggers” in stark contrast to their white counterparts referred to in more appropriate and respectful te...

Africa - A History of Mystery

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Africa - A History of Mystery African history is not spoken about enough. Why do I say that? Because it is the truth. Often times when people in the “Western World” hear about Africa, their first perceptions are of people running around naked in a jungle. It is not easy for them to break free of this narrow perspective either as this popular view has been held for many centuries until now! When we study Black History, we are told about all the negative aspects of the past. We learn of wars, genocide, famine, poverty, disease, and death. You can never outpace the best of what you know your limits to be. I can assure you that the African youth of today don’t even know the African youth of yesterday and even worse, they are not taught about their wonderful history at school either-the very institution which claims to grant essential knowledge and truth. Why is African History important? Here is a quote by 18 th  Century British Statesman Edmond Burke: “Those who don’t know hist...