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Detail of artist George Gist’s mural at the Wisconsin Black Historical Society and Museum. (Photo by Allison Steines)
Municipal Court Judge Derek Mosley reflects on the personal significance of his longstanding commitment to sharing history throughout Black History Month. NNS will share his facts on Facebook throughout the month.
It’s February, and like every February for the last 10 years, I will roll out a Black History fact each day for the next 28 days. What started as a way to provide historical information to those I was acquainted with on Facebook has grown into something much larger. My goal was to not only provide information to my social circle, but to also have them share it with their circles, and so on. I went from posts being shared by 20 people to a post about Henrietta Lacks being shared over 70,000 times.
Although these facts are United States history, many are hearing about them for the first time. These stories have been erased from the historical record and omitted from the curricula of our schools. However, today, more than ever, we have the resources at our disposal to reach millions. If the collective education system of this country will not share these stories, then it is up to us to complete the historical registry.
Carter G. Woodson, the father of Black History Month, once said: “If a race has no history, it has no worthwhile tradition, it becomes a negligible factor in the thought of the world, and it stands in danger of being exterminated.”
I was fortunate to have parents that felt our history was important and needed to be shared and taught. They instilled in me this thirst for knowledge of self. This journey has given me a better understanding of my people and has allowed me to share the struggles, perseverance and greatness with my children and humankind.
Please come along with me on this journey and share these American stories. Use this month to inform, entertain and enlighten. Black History is more than a glamorous fact, it is a historical truth. As Dr. Maya Angelou stated: “No man can know where he is going, unless he knows exactly where he has been and exactly how he arrived at his present place.”
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