Washington Post Publishes Five Essays On What Isn’t Being Talked About When Schools Teach Slavery and Features Prominent Historians

From the Post: "For this project on how students learn about slavery in American schools, The Washington Post asked noted historians to write an essay on aspects of slavery that are misunderstood, poorly taught or not covered at all in the nation’s classrooms. From the cruel separation of families to the resistance by enslaved people and the widespread enslavement of Native Americans, these contributions address gaps in our common knowledge about what the practice of slavery has meant for America."

The series is comprimsed of 5 articles:

"Yes, there was rebellion. But smaller acts of resistance defined the daily lives of the enslaved" by Hasan Kwame Jeffries, an associate professor of history at Ohio State University, an adviser to the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis and host of the “Teaching Hard History” podcast.

"Slavery’s horror included family separation, despite the portrayal in some history textbooks," by Daina Ramey Berry, the Oliver H. Radkey Regents professor of history and associate dean of the graduate school at the University of Texas at Austin; Keffrelyn D. Brown, professor and University Distinguished Teaching Professor of cultural studies in education in curriculum and instruction at UT-Austin; Anthony L. Brown, a professor of curriculum and instruction in social studies education at UT-Austin. Keffrelyn D. Brown and Anthony L. Brown are co-founders/co-directors of the Center for Innovation in Race, Teaching and Curriculum at UT-Austin.

"‘Extermination and enslavement’: The twin horrors of the American dawn," by Walter Johnson, the Winthrop Professor of History and professor of African and African American Studies at Harvard University. He is the author of “Soul by Soul: Life Inside the Antebellum Slave Market” and “The Broken Heart of America: St. Louis and the Violent History of the United States.”

"Enslaved people toiled on plantations. They also built America’s cities," by Leslie M. Harris, professor of history at Northwestern University. She is the author of “In the Shadow of Slavery: African Americans in New York City, 1626-1863” and the co-editor of “Slavery and Freedom in Savannah.”

"The other slavery: Native Americans also faced a vast and degrading system of bondage," by Andrés Reséndez, professor of Mexican history at the University of California at Davis and author of “The Other Slavery: The Uncovered Story of Indian Enslavement in America.”

Click here or below to read the individual essays.