It’s Okay To Demand Freedom

Each year, the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) selects a Black History Month theme. ASALH is regarded as an authority on the topic of Black History and the source for themes for the month for many educational and public institutions. This year’s theme is “Black Resistance.”

Black Resistance is the collective and individual struggle of Black people of the diaspora against anti-Black racism. Specifically in the United States, this resistance was born out of the lasting legacy of the transatlantic slave trade. Although chattel slavery has ended in the US, Black people still experience violence, systematic disenfranchisement, and exclusion from health care, education, and economic, political, and social life. At its core, Black Resistance is about the fight for justice, equity, inclusion, and freedom in all its varied forms. Read more about Black Resistance on ASALH’s web page.

This month, we’re talking to EL Education students and educators about what Black Resistance means to them and how it plays a role in education.

Black Resistance is the collective and individual struggle of Black people of the diaspora against anti-Black racism. Specifically in the United States, this resistance was born out of the lasting legacy of the transatlantic slave trade. Although chattel slavery has ended in the US, Black people still experience violence, systematic disenfranchisement, and exclusion from health care, education, and economic, political, and social life. At its core, Black Resistance is about the fight for justice, equity, inclusion, and freedom in all its varied forms. Read more about Black Resistance on ASALH’s web page.

This month, we’re talking to EL Education students and educators about what Black Resistance means to them and how it plays a role in education.

Tawana Jordan, Master Teacher at Burns Elementary Middle School in Detroit, MI, says that George Washington Carver: A Life was transformational in her practice of Black Resistance.

She says, “It changed so many things that I thought about what I could become.”

As a child, Carver was self-taught, learning to paint and sing, among other skills. He resisted the idea that Black people must ask for permission to become educated. Eventually, he went on to higher education and became so brilliant and highly esteemed that “people like Einstein were begging him to come and educate them.” Jordan appreciated Carver’s unapologetic approach to educating himself.

Jordan thought of Carver’s resistance again as a fourth-grade teacher talking to her students about the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolutionary War. She saw that history often paints White historical figures of the time as proud heroes of liberation who “stood up and said, ‘here’s the Declaration of Independence, and if you don’t like it, then we’re going to fight for our freedoms.’”

That same history often portrays Black people as needing to “beg for our freedoms.”

Jordan now practices Black Resistance with her students while reading historical and fiction texts, asking them, “Where would you be in this story?” and encouraging them to think about the stories and voices often left out of history. This shift in perspective empowers her Black students and other students of color to be “grounded in who they are and know that it’s okay to demand freedom.” At the same time, it allows White students to practice empathy and say, “I want my identity to be recognized, and I want others to be able to recognize their identities.”

For other schools looking to create spaces for pride in Black identities and accomplishments–which is in and of itself an act of Black Resistance–Jordan says, “Just do it; be open and treat your students how you would want to be treated if you were the only you in your situation,” says Jordan. From there, she suggests connecting with students and their identities across commonalities while honoring differences.

Disclaimer: EL Education is proud to host diverse voices and offer a platform for dialogue on topics impacting educators and students. Views of guest bloggers are their own and may differ from the views of EL Education.