Mar 8, 2020 3 min read

As a white male in a prejudiced society, my opinions and viewpoints are at odds with a lot of mainstream opinions. Even though I have no intention to verbally harm and/or discredit minorities, my opinions fall on the deaf ears of those who choose to see the world in a way I have simply never understood, or could never understand. As we encroach upon the month of February, we start to move into the month designated by the government as “Black History Month.” I don’t believe that this is the appropriate way to recognize the courageous sacrifices of people from the black culture.

When Black History Month was established, it created a separation of history into two sections: Black History and all else. This is exactly what Martin Luther King Jr. battled with his speeches and protests. As he said, “I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave-owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood” (“I Have A Dream”, Page 4, Paragraph 6). Our history should be presented with equality. Many people may see it differently, but it affects everyone.To segregate black history from all other history is not a goal that Martin Luther King Jr. strove for.

Black history deserves the same respect and reverence that other sections of history have by nature. Public schooling avoids this topic diligently. The only exception made is during February when it is almost forced into the curriculum. This leads to short, repetitive lessons year after year from one teacher to the next. Why should we segregate history as our ancestors segregated us? Why should we conform to the boundaries that society restrains us by? Although this may be all many people of society know, a change needs to occur in the way society views other cultures and races. The way that history is taught leaves large holes in our knowledge of the past. For example, we never learned of the contribution that black men, both free and slave, made to the Revolutionary War. The narrative that is pushed is one of a white man’s success, not the struggle and achievement that was accomplished by the foot soldiers. These foot soldiers were not only British and French but also slaves from Africa who were promised freedom for their service in the war.

This helps lead us into how we can make a difference in the lives and communities of the people around us of all races. These acts do not have to be extravagant or laborious. An act as simple as a smile or even a friendly greeting can help us progress past the stigmas that confine us. Now by no means am I saying that by being considerate to everyone will abolish racism. Racism will always inhabit a small, sinful part of this world. The only way to prevent it from becoming prevalent is to stand together against it.

In conclusion for our society to become more informed, and integrated further the stigmas of the past must be broken. This will take a lot of time and effort to do, but it is achievable if we work as a whole to correct these wrongs done to our fellow brethren. Although we may be from different walks of life, we are all human.

Asa Charnik is an 11-grader at Washington High School and the son of Janine Butterfield of Washington.