Need good black history/slavery book without n-word
May 2, 2010 at 9:21 PM Post #31 of 46
Yes, please show them the whole story. this is a sad part of America's history and it really wasn't that long ago. Yes, America's history, I'm not talking about slavery in other countries or apartheid in S. Africa. seeing that your from the US.
but really 12 would be a better age for them.
maybe your child sang the John Brown children's song in school, John Brown was an abolitionist.
 
May 2, 2010 at 9:32 PM Post #32 of 46
Quote:

Originally Posted by dazzer1975 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Regarding slavery, ensure your children get a balanced view, and not one predicated on skin colour. While of course there was such a notion as "white man's burden", don't forget that slavery existed in Africa between and amongst Africans before the Europeans and Americans got involved.

Slavery is cross cultural and racial, American and European white master / black slave relationship is just a tiny sample of slavery, in addition to a European/American economic white master / white slave relationship.

so there's a black history of slavery, a white history of slavery and everything in between.


for a general education about slavery, perhaps

however black slavery in the USA is of paramount importance to understanding our nation's social and cultural history. the enslavement of blacks is directly related to their underclass status during reconstruction, the "separate but equal" dogma, and eventually the civil rights movement. and by extension, it is this knowledge alone - not that of african slavery of pygmies, or others - that will broaden a child's (or anyone's) understanding of current socioeconomic barriers that exist between races in america to this day. a topic "this close to home," so to speak, will be a lot more meaningful than any other anecdotes, including anything from the bible.


I would argue that this is a fantastic time to teach your children about the realities of slavery - the earlier the start the better. that goes for just about every topic, not just slavery. even at 6 years of age, I was learning about the civil rights movement and slavery in 1st grade. I have no doubt that even the most rudimentary introduction to the topic will give your children a good, humble, and accepting perspective which will have positive effects on everything they will learn or experience from here on out
 
May 3, 2010 at 2:42 AM Post #33 of 46
Quote:

Originally Posted by iq160plus /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I want them to have a realistic view of the horrible history of slavery.

Any Ideas for books not riddled with racial slurs, and available in Audio Book form?
happy_face1.gif



Condradiction.
 
May 3, 2010 at 2:44 AM Post #34 of 46
Quote:

Originally Posted by Kirosia /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Funny thing, I grew up in the ghetto and pretty much everyone used the N-word (-ga), including some whites. We all knew each other to some extent, so folks were cool with it. (I'm Southeast Asian, picked it up from the black kids, use it around black kids, never been called out) If you were someone from say a different socio-economic class who wasn't black, then it might become an issue. But usually we just laughed it off.


Exactly. I hate explaining to outsiders that the n-word can be used by non-blacks if they are accepted within the group that uses that word to express to one another.
I'm Asian and technically an outsider (non-American) but i still know this stuff. People think it's taboo / forbidden for non-blacks to use that word when it isn't. Yes, it's non-acceptable in most social circumstances but not all. And I hate having to explain that there is a difference between the -ga version of the word and the -er version of the word.
Also you might want to teach your children both sides of the story e.g. African kings sold off (what we now term) POWs in tribal wars to Europeans and Arabs for their own profit and poltical influence. The Arab Slave Trade was far bigger than the Atlantic slave trade and included European slaves too.
 
May 3, 2010 at 2:54 AM Post #35 of 46
Quote:

Originally Posted by Fido2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
If you are schooling your children on slavery they need to hear about all of it not just the black folks. Read this too:
Amazon.com: They Were White and They Were Slaves: The Untold History of the Enslavement of Whites in Early America (9780929903057): Michael A. Hoffman II: Books


The difference between the white slaves of america and the black slaves were that the white slaves were mainly indebtor slaves. There's a good PBS series documentary on slavery as well.
 
May 3, 2010 at 4:42 AM Post #36 of 46
Quote:

Originally Posted by dazzer1975 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Regarding slavery, ensure your children get a balanced view, and not one predicated on skin colour. While of course there was such a notion as "white man's burden", don't forget that slavery existed in Africa between and amongst Africans before the Europeans and Americans got involved.

Slavery is cross cultural and racial, American and European white master / black slave relationship is just a tiny sample of slavery, in addition to a European/American economic white master / white slave relationship.

so there's a black history of slavery, a white history of slavery and everything in between.


I second that with all my heart.
 
May 3, 2010 at 10:58 AM Post #37 of 46
Quote:

Originally Posted by iq160plus /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I have been listening to ROOTS (Alex Haley) on a 30 hr cd set this week. I intended to have my 6 and 8 yr old kids listen as an educational book at night, but it is riddled with "the n-word" about 1/2 way in.

Being a white man with two young kids, I do not want them to listen to such a book. Turned off Huckleberry Finn for the same reason.

On it's own merit, ROOTS in context for an adult seems not offensive as an educational resource. However, since I have told my children about all of the racial slurs I know for all sorts of races and the reasons for using never them, it seems counter-productive to allow them to listen to ROOTS.

I want them to have a realistic view of the horrible history of slavery. We have the bible for some in Egypt, Assyria, etc. I am looking for a book that tells the horrible beginning that black people had in their first experiences in the United States.

Any Ideas for books not riddled with racial slurs, and available in Audio Book form?
happy_face1.gif


I have ROOTS DVD on the way. I do not remember it being as bad. I also appreciate any ideas on how to properly educate children on the horrors of that part of history since it began early in US history and was heavily part of it up until I was a child.


I feel sorry for your kids.
 
May 3, 2010 at 6:56 PM Post #38 of 46
Quote:

Originally Posted by dazzer1975 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Regarding slavery, ensure your children get a balanced view, and not one predicated on skin colour. While of course there was such a notion as "white man's burden", don't forget that slavery existed in Africa between and amongst Africans before the Europeans and Americans got involved.

Slavery is cross cultural and racial, American and European white master / black slave relationship is just a tiny sample of slavery, in addition to a European/American economic white master / white slave relationship.

so there's a black history of slavery, a white history of slavery and everything in between.


The sickest is child slavery, especially of the sexual nature.. This really gets my blood boilings.. To the op.. Just live in a diverse area where your kids are around people of color, so no stereotypes will develop.. I have friends of all races & religions. We are all human beings after all. Your kids will hear bad words & ethnics slurs.. You cannot protect them from that.
 
May 3, 2010 at 9:30 PM Post #39 of 46
Quote:

Originally Posted by El_Doug /img/forum/go_quote.gif
for a general education about slavery, perhaps

however black slavery in the USA is of paramount importance to understanding our nation's social and cultural history. the enslavement of blacks is directly related to their underclass status during reconstruction, the "separate but equal" dogma, and eventually the civil rights movement. and by extension, it is this knowledge alone - not that of african slavery of pygmies, or others - that will broaden a child's (or anyone's) understanding of current socioeconomic barriers that exist between races in america to this day. a topic "this close to home," so to speak, will be a lot more meaningful than any other anecdotes, including anything from the bible.


I would argue that this is a fantastic time to teach your children about the realities of slavery - the earlier the start the better. that goes for just about every topic, not just slavery. even at 6 years of age, I was learning about the civil rights movement and slavery in 1st grade. I have no doubt that even the most rudimentary introduction to the topic will give your children a good, humble, and accepting perspective which will have positive effects on everything they will learn or experience from here on out


Very Well Put ElDoug
The US also had the One Drop Rule.
if there was a hearted feature on this forum, you would get one.
 
May 4, 2010 at 9:50 PM Post #40 of 46
Some food for thought:

1. I'd start by teaching them 'happy' history. You know, The Founding Fathers, the American Revolution, the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, and all that jazz. You could even throw in some Enlightenment philosophy. The idea would be to get them to see the positive power of ideas and the principles of the nation.

2. Later on in life, once they're older, show them the 'bad' history. By the time they're older you won't care if the n-word is in there or not.

I don't understand this need to show young kids how terrible humanity can be. That's for later on in life. The goodness in humanity is just as real as the bad, and I believe an understanding of what is good should proceed the bad. I don't think kids should grow up thinking 'life sucks' or that 'the status quo is just gonna push me down'. The sentimental Disney-BS has its place, and that place is childhood.

An introduction to evil should be through heroic stories. You know, the kind where the good guys prevail. That way when they come across stuff like slavery, their context won't be a nihilistic one of "that's the way people are, life sucks, the status quo is just there to oppress me" but an inspiring one of "there is really evil, but I can fight it". I get the feeling that kids these days are nihilistic and think that evil either doesn't exist or impossible to overcome.
 
May 5, 2010 at 12:08 PM Post #42 of 46
Quote:

Originally Posted by chinesekiwi /img/forum/go_quote.gif
The difference between the white slaves of america and the black slaves were that the white slaves were mainly indebtor slaves. There's a good PBS series documentary on slavery as well.


Yes yes...some but not all. BUT what many don't know is that the white indentured slaves were actually treated worse than the black slaves in most cases because the black slaves were purchased, ie expensive, property and therefore were of a greater financial interest. Whereas the indentured servants were essentially "borrowed" laborers and got the crapp beat out of them. A similar analogy would be a rental car vs. a car you own...which gets the better treatment...usually?

The English crown and German govts both made a point to ship off many poor white adults and orphans to the new world to rid their respective countries of them. These people ended up on the big plantations. At one time the slaves on the sugar plantations in Barbados were 85% white Irish....

It has always been and still is about the super wealthy dominating and exploiting the poor. You see this in every country regardless of ethnicity(ies).
 
May 13, 2010 at 5:37 AM Post #45 of 46
The N word is something I will say and I think we should all say, but not refer to a person or people by.
 
I know it's been 'reclaimed' via hip-hop to an extent, but from hip-hop too I learnt why some hate it in terms of meaning (and likewise the term 'negro' which isn't seen as a slur). Basically the latter is seen by some to have been derived from black object, indicating that the person in question was property, not a person. The N word is a slur derived from negro.
 
So, you tell you're children, assuming they value people and respect them, that by referring to someone with the N word, they undermine them and their status and rights as a person.
 
I don't think it's the same with other ethnic slurs, because they are just slurs (not that they're acceptable). People oftten compare other slurs to the N word but it'snot a fair comparison, in my opinion.
That said, I don't think using it them should be criminal, it should be offensive and unacceptable, socially, that's all.
 
By the way, I would have used the N word here, if we were speaking in person.
 
 
Sources: Public Enemy, Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, Ras Kass etc.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Back
Top