diverse conversations
Making Space for New Perspectives Locals Address Race with Younger Generations by Meredith Montgomery or the second part to the 13th amendment that says if you’re a criminal you’re a slave again. Black, white, Asian, Mexican, American Indian—there are so many histories of so many people and so many histories have been left out. People are culturally engaged in ignorance—both black and white—because we weren’t taught the true history of the United States, and further the true history of the world.”
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Martin comes from a long line of educators and founded a mentorship program for young boys in Fairhope, where he will be sworn in as the first African American city councilman next month. He is confident that when the education system broadens what is taught in schools, people will recognize that we are all just humans. “They will see that the only thing that separates us now is the content of our character and our heart, our values, our morals, what we stand by and not really ever the color of our skin.”
Conversations about race are taking place across the country as nearly 3 in 4 Americans consider racial and ethnic discrimination to be a big problem in the U.S, according to a Monmouth University Poll in June. Adults are voicing their opinions, marching in protests and reflecting on their own experiences, but what is being done to engage the nation’s youth in the conversation?
Diving Deeper into History Acknowledging a Lack of Education Prichard native and Mobile resident Darlene Lewis, who has been a school counselor in mostly inner-city schools for six years, feels that in the U.S. there seems to be little motivation to learn about people and communities that are different from us. “Until something terrible happens like the George Floyd incident, and then it’s forced upon us. But it shouldn’t be forced upon us, it should automatically be taught, and when it’s not, we need to educate ourselves,” she says. Corey Martin agrees that a lack of knowledge plays a consequential role in perspectives on race, saying, “Education is the crux of the issue. People don’t understand the Black Codes 14
Gulf Coast Alabama/Mississippi Edition
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At Bayside Academy, in Daphne, history lessons are not limited to what can be found in a textbook. In 2016, a group of social studies teachers were pondering creative ways to engage their students in the classroom. With a shared interest in Southern history and the civil rights movement, they teamed up with the art department to develop Understanding the Southern Mystique—an interdisciplinary course that considers what