Giving the Truth about Black History

It was the evening for the Super Bowl, and little Johnny sat on the floor between his great grandpa's legs. He turned and smiled as his great grandpa told him old stories of his grand-dad, dad, and uncles, he teased them for going through the same problems and getting the same type of wounds he had gotten. It was hard to see his father being his age; He seen his father as a different person, and decided to do his report for his favorite hero as being his dad.

It's not a bad thing to enhance our youth's vision of the history of Black Americans, but while we do that, we might want to educate them on some of the great things their relatives, ancestors contributed to society as well. Let them know how their parents and grandparents did great things, which may encourage them to want to be productive as well. It shows them that even great people are ordinary people like them.

When you teach children about the things that went on in your immediate family, it also gives them the history of your family to be passed down to their offspring as time passes on.

I know in our family, we all know about historical moments that happened in our family; Like, we know about our grandfather's birth parents, whom both passed away , leaving us with a different name, and no-kin roots. But we stand strong in our bloodline, as well as representing the name in which my grandfather received from his stepfather. And to keep in focus of what the topic is about; Our family know and interact with my grandfather's blood relatives also.

We know about certain experiences and situations that have happened in our family like the time our family had to all work together to keep ends met, and how our parents had to go barefoot to school. These are all a part of history to our youth. The children in your family need to know what it was like for their grandmother's and grandfather's back in the day.

I know that the educational system has a curriculum for Black History Month, and this is when they learn about the major contributions that Blacks made in the growth of America; But not just during the month of February, can the children learn about their own family's history. Share with your children, the memories and interesting facts of their ancestors. It'll be not only a lesson, but it'll be your family history being passed along to your children, creating a long line of family history!

What great experiences, or contributions have your family made, that you'd like to share with your children, so that they will know how important of a person grandpa was?