African American Cultural Awareness

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Julian Harrell 11/29/2011 English 102 Dr. Prince Rough Draft Learning about the history of other cultures contributes to cultural awareness. There are often more facts of a culture than meet the eye. While African American History unquestionably includes the background of slavery, one can also learn other aspects of the history, whether it is through reading works from the renowned poet Langston Hughes during the Harlem Renaissance, watching documentaries on the Civil Rights Movement, or learning about the legendary baseball player Jackie Robinson. In African American Lives Henry Louis Gates, suggest that it is important for African Americans to recover our personal histories because it will give a deeper understanding…show more content…
One of the most memorable accomplishments in our past as African Americans was the Civil War. The civil war was a huge event that created blacks as equal in society. The Civil war was the war against slavery through the North and the south. So many casualties were accounted for in this war but so much has benefitted from it. The American Civil War 1861 to 1865 was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ("the Confederacy"); the other 25 states supported the federal government called the Union. After four years of warfare, mostly within the Southern states, the Confederacy surrendered and slavery was outlawed everywhere in the nation. Issues that led to war were partially resolved in the Reconstruction Era that followed, though others remained unresolved. As African Americans we should know the history of the civil War and what he has really done for us. Abraham Lincoln is a great part of our history because without his leadership and his belief of how slavery was wrong a lot of the equal rights we have now wouldn’t be…show more content…
Both groups were asked to name ten famous Americans, excluding presidents. Of the students, the three highest names were blacks: 67% named Martin Luther King, 60% Rosa Parks, and 44% Harriet Tubman. Among adults, King was 2nd (at 36%) and Parks was tied for 4th with 30%, while Tubman tied for 10th place with Henry Ford, at 16%. When distinguished historians were asked in 2006 to name the most prominent Americans, Parks and Tubman did not make the top 100. African-American history is filled with the tales of inspiring individuals—many of whom overcame great odds to leave their mark on the United States. In this group, we examine the lives of African-Americans who have made extraordinary achievements in their fields, including inventors such as George Washington Carver; activists like Malcolm X and Rosa Parks; athletes such as Willie Mays and Michael Jordan; and entertainers like Bessie Smith and Oprah Winfrey. Their names, and their stories, have become synonymous with the rich legacy that is African-American
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