GOSSIP FROM THE GIRLFRIEND GATHERINGS

Learning from YOU to empower ME !

Black History IS American History

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In 1565, the Spanish brought enslaved Africans to what is now Florida.

In 1619, the English brought enslaved Africans to Virginia.

They were victims of human trafficking.

And, from them and more that followed, surviving the horrors of the Middle Passage, a new people were bred in the Americas.

Mixed children of the enslaved, the native, and the free.

Today, they are called African Americans.

Even while enslaved, they participated and contributed to EVERY significant event in what became the United States of America.

The facts are that the very economy of the fledgling new country was built on the backs of these enslaved people.

Their hands literally built our esteemed buildings in the nation’s capital.

For example, the enslaved American, Philip Reid, helped construct the Statue of Freedom atop our U.S. Capitol today.

https://www.aoc.gov/explore-capitol-campus/art/statue-freedom/philip-reid

We were at the Boston Tea Party, and we are fighting now for our country in the 21st century.

African American inventors created and changed their country and the world with inventions sometimes born from necessity. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_African-American_inventors_and_scientists

Our blood, sweat, and tears are in the roots of America.

We were bred here. We were born here.  We belong here.

Along with our Native American brethren, the African American relationship with America is unique.

There is no way for others to understand it or how we “be” in that relationship.

We only ask that you acknowledge that uniqueness.

FREEDOM has a different context for us.

Because our journey to acquire it was like no other.

We rise in a different way when it is threatened. 

But we rise … as Americans.

When the complete history of the journeys of ALL American people is embraced as ONE history, then we will have taken the first healing step in our land of the free and home of the brave.

“12 Years A Slave” – A Girlfriend Gathering Movie / Book Review

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12 Years a Slave

On October 28th, my girlfriends and I attended the opening of the movie “12 Years a Slave” in Houston at the historic River Oaks Theatre.    This was the only theatre in Houston showing the movie on the second limited opening across the nation.    As the “unofficial” coordinator of our girlfriend gatherings, I was really excited about getting my great friends together to attend.    We are a multi-cultural group of single, divorced and widowed women who strive to reach across stereotypical boundaries to truly know and understand one another.   Whenever we are together I think of that old Marvin Gaye song “What’s Going On?” and the verse “Talk to me, so you can see, what’s going on.”

Our group had attended the movie “The Butler” a couple of months ago and saw the preview for “12 Years a Slave” at that time.   It created a buzz among us especially when we discovered that only one of us had ever heard of Solomon Northup and she is Anglo-American!   She learned about him in school in upstate New York whereas those of us who grew up in the South had never heard of him.   This is another testament to the sad state of our country’s educational system and the travesty it teaches named American History.   It is my hope that one day the historic journeys and contributions of all of America’s citizens will be included in the history books but until then I guess we will discover it in bits and pieces.   These were my thoughts as we waited for the start of the movie on that day.  Since October 28th, I have seen the movie twice more and read the book that Solomon Northup published in 1853.   I waited to read his book before blogging about the movie.

The movie was brutally honest.   It accurately depicted the grave injustice and inhumanity that was done to Solomon Northup, as a free citizen, and to the enslaved African-Americans he encountered on his journey.    In my opinion, director Steve McQueen was very deliberate in bringing this disturbing subject to life for those of us who can never imagine the impact of slavery on a human being.    The superb performances of Chiwetel Ejiofor (Solomon), Lupita Nyong’o (Patsy), and Michael Fassbender (Epps) evoked such a range of emotions in me that my heart actually raced.  There were many moments during the movie where my thoughts could not process what was happening on the screen.   I was compelled to view it multiple times until my soul was satisfied.   I am grateful to the director, producers, and actors for bringing this troubling and painful story to the forefront.

The reading of Solomon Northup’s book took me to an even deeper place.   Reading his own words written in 1853 about what happened to him and his thoughts about it brought me to a level of sad discontentment.   Every word he wrote was a contradiction to all that I had been taught as a student in my history classes.   I wanted justice for him so badly and wondered what can be done for him in this present time.   The only act I think that can be consolation for me is to encourage others to see the movie and read his book.   Also, I want for others to encourage their friends and family to spread the word, too.

I think that every American should see the movie and read the book because Solomon Northup’s journey as an American citizen is worthy to be known by all.   Slavery in America is a subject that many of us do not want to acknowledge, discuss, and review.   Some descendants of former slave owners and former slaves want to continue to ignore this past because it is uncomfortable for them.   However, the historical fact is that America was founded on the economic benefit of slavery and America had the largest slavery system in the history of the world.   These facts are a part of our dark past and our laws have evolved beyond that past.    But, if we continue to exclude the truth about slavery and the impact on American citizens from the history classes in our educational system, how can we truly determine that we have evolved beyond our dark past?   What does it say to the memory of those who suffered through it and fought against it?    These are the questions that our American society, in the present time, must answer.

QUESTIONS:

Have you seen the movie?   If so, please share your thoughts/experience.

If you haven’t seen the movie, do you plan to see it?     Why?

Would you consider reading the book?

How do you feel about the history that is taught in American public schools?

Juneteenth – From Disdain to Pride

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Women Having CoffeeToday marks the 148th anniversary of the date when Union Army Major General Gordon Granger stood in Galveston, Texas and announced to the Texas slaves that they were free.

For me, today marks the first time I, a native Texan and Houstonian, formally celebrated this holiday. In the past, I held a disdain for the celebrations on this date because I could not understand why we would celebrate a day when our African-American ancestors were “given” something that never should have been denied them – freedom.

I now know that I was totally misguided because I had not sought information beyond what I was taught in Texas public school. Last year, I discovered the truth when I visited the African American Civil War Memorial (http://www.afroamcivilwar.org) in Washington, D.C. and read specific information in the Emancipation Proclamation. It clearly stated there that the Proclamation provided freedom to the slaves in the seceding states once those states were conquered and had surrendered to the Union. For that reason, 200,000 African-American men, runaway slaves and free men, rose up and joined the Union to ensure they won the Civil War so their enslaved brothers and sisters could be freed. In essence, African-American men fought and won the freedom – it was not “given” to our ancestors.

Even though General Robert E. Lee surrendered on April 9, 1865, the last battle of the Civil War – Battle of Palmito Ranch – was fought in Texas on May 12 and 13, 1865. At this point, Texas was conquered and the state was occupied by the African-American Union troops that helped defeat it. The Texas slaves discovered their freedom one month later. The conditions of the Emancipation Proclamation had been satisfied and freedom had been won.

It was an enlightening and proud moment for me to learn these facts which had never been mentioned in school

So, to celebrate today, I visited The African-American Library at the Gregory School (http://thegregoryschool.org) which is a part of the Houston Public Library system and one of our premier research libraries here in Houston. This library hosts an exhibit of life after slavery for Texas ex-slaves.

It was amazing to learn that within six months of obtaining freedom, 1,000 ex-slaves traveled to Houston, Texas and bought land in 1865 – to form the now historic Freedmen’s Town.
By 1870, they had opened their first school – The Gregory Institute.  In 1876, that school became the first public school for African-American children and a part of the Houston Independent school district. The school is now a State Archaeological Landmark and stands proudly for a people who rose up through unimaginable adversity to aspire for education and a path to the American dream.

The exhibit shares information on many of the African-American “firsts” in Houston and their contribution to the African-American community and the Houston community as a whole. If you have an opportunity to visit, you will be inspired.

So, today was a good day for me. Through my quest to always seek knowledge, I have moved from disdain to pride in this date and its significance to my people, my state, and my country.

Happy Juneteenth!

QUESTION(S):

What are your thoughts about the Juneteenth holiday?

Do you celebrate it?   If so, please share how you celebrate.