Category Archives: American politics

Birth of a Nation: Another Creation Angle

Posted on January 18, 2016 by admin

From time to time those of us working with the Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers Project (MPCPMP) find ourselves re-emphasizing several points about U.S. history as the country addresses the day’s pertinent issues. These themes bear repeating: The nation’s … Continue reading →

Posted in American legal system, American politics, descendants of slaves, ethnic studies, gun control, weapons | Comments Off on Birth of a Nation: Another Creation Angle

Bubbling to the Surface – Coincidence?

Posted on October 13, 2015 by admin

Summer is cooling into recent memory, but an article in the New York Times Magazine by historian Douglas Egerton provided important background information on Emmanuel AME Church in North Charleston, SC, where nine people were murdered almost three months ago. This … Continue reading →

Posted in African American History, American politics | Comments Off on Bubbling to the Surface – Coincidence?

Black Enslavement and Emancipation – How Long

Posted on August 31, 2015 by admin

In an address given on August 23, 2015, to an audience gathered at Faneuil Hall in Boston, Massachusetts, for an ancestral remembrance ceremony to commemorate enslaved Africans, Massachusetts State Representative Byron Rushing made a remark that struck a chord – … Continue reading →

Posted in African American History, American legal system, American politics, descendants of slaves, reparations, slavery | Comments Off on Black Enslavement and Emancipation – How Long

Fantasy

Posted on July 2, 2015 by admin

If I am not who you say I am then you are not who you think you are. Whenever observance for July 4th approaches, historical reflection is appropriate. This year, 2015, has been a time when chickens came home to … Continue reading →

Posted in African American History, African American literature, American legal system, American politics, ancestors, captured Africans, descendants of slaves, Slave economy, slavery, Uncategorized | Comments Off on Fantasy

Protest, Image, Black Struggle and Legacy

Posted on May 27, 2015 by admin

All black progress in the United States has begun with confrontation and resistance. This is a basic fact of American life and the only way to understand the current protest focused on police violence. As the black abolitionist Frederick Douglass … Continue reading →

Posted in African American History, American legal system, American politics, slavery | Comments Off on Protest, Image, Black Struggle and Legacy

Reality Check

Posted on July 29, 2013 by admin

2013 may eventually be described as the time of “Great Awakening.” Many people in the United States, especially people of color, have settled into a comfort zone. The second election of President Obama was a national accomplishment – a milestone … Continue reading →

Posted in American politics | Comments Off on Reality Check

A New Year: Creating a More Perfect Union

Posted on January 22, 2013 by admin

This is the beginning. Always we start with hopes for a better year than the last. That is natural even in the face of frequently disappointing reality. In 2013 we will, as our ancestors have done in previous generations, work … Continue reading →

Posted in African American History, American politics | Comments Off on A New Year: Creating a More Perfect Union

Hope: The Days After

Posted on December 18, 2012 by admin

According to a Christian writer, the path to salvation requires faith, hope, and charity. He singles out charity as the greatest of the three. As we review the history of this hemisphere there is sufficient evidence to challenge that. In … Continue reading →

Posted in African American History, American politics | Comments Off on Hope: The Days After

Now or Never

Posted on October 7, 2012 by admin

Recently, during a conversation about the Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers Project, someone stated that we must move as quickly as possible to conduct memorial services for our ancestors and place markers at Middle Passage port sites, or their … Continue reading →

Posted in African American History, African Diaspora, African ethnic groups, American legal system, American politics, ancestors, descendants of slaves, slave ports, slavery, transatlantic slave trade | Comments Off on Now or Never

Source Documents for Blog Posts (May-August, 2012)

Posted on September 23, 2012 by admin

Text: A Forgotten History: The Slave Trade and Slavery in New England, Choices for the 21st Century Education Program, Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown University, (2008). This work provides an overview of enslavement and the human trade of Africans … Continue reading →

Posted in African American History, African American literature, African Diaspora, American legal system, American politics, descendants of slaves, slavery, transatlantic slave trade | Comments Off on Source Documents for Blog Posts (May-August, 2012)