Skill Building in America

(This piece is unfortunately without the usual photos as my partner in crime Jin is on vacation.)

t turns out that Ron DeSatanist, the man who pronounced “Florida is where woke comes to die,” who rejected the College Board’s A.P. course on African American studies, had the state’s social studies textbooks updated, neutering topics such as critical race theory, has outdone himself. 

The new overhaul of standards for African American history states that  middle schoolers should be instructed that “slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit.” In other words, if you just try to look at the bright side of slavery, you will see a robust vocational training experience. 

Now that’s a silver lining for the ages.  Slavery as a skills building opportunity? Can you imagine a sign at the slave market that read: Learn a trade-pursue an opportunity of a lifetime! 

The Florida Department of Education stated the new standards were the result of a “rigorous process,” describing them as “in-depth and comprehensive.” One can say that slavery adhered to the very same principles. 

The Florida standards were created by a 13-member “work group,” with input from the African American history task force, according to the Florida Department of Education. I sure would like to see the resumes and political affiliations of those on the African American task force. Here’s a statement supporting “skill building:”

“Any attempt to reduce slaves to just victims of oppression fails to recognize their strength, courage and resilience during a difficult time in American history,” they said. “Florida students deserve to learn how slaves took advantage of whatever circumstances they were in to benefit themselves and the community of African descendants.”

Don’t get me wrong. Black resilience in the face of unimaginable dehumanization at the hands of White slave owners was remarkable. Yes, they did learn blacksmithing, shoemaking and fishing. But what happened if a slave didn’t want to be a shoemaker? Or what happened if you messed up the repair of a horseshoe while blacksmithing? I get the chills thinking about the consequences.

Let’s explore other skills learned by Black slaves that speak to their resilience that were not mentioned in the document generated by the Florida “work group.”

Here are just a few:

Healers of wounds from  brutal beatings.

Dissociation as a result of being raped by their white masters.

Trauma Training from loss when separated from one’s family.

Dignity in a world of devastating dehumanization.

I guess the “work group” didn’t want middle schoolers to have to confront that. They much rather have them think of Black slaves as enjoying a Sunday afternoon down by the river fishing. 

The attempt to whitewash the profound and devastating impact of slavery is not new. It is part of White America’s refusal to acknowledge its egregious and original sin. Acknowledgement challenges the fantasy of American exceptionalism. True exceptionalism begins with a reckoning of this sin (as well as the sin of the massacre of Native Americans.) Ron DeSatanist is running for the nomination to be president of the Republican Party. With him and his party in power, America will move further from its necessary reckoning and the continued white washing of Black trauma will continue to create further wound and diminish us all.