,
10 tweets,
3 min read
Read on Twitter
Prof. @Cassanello came to speak to my students in his new doc “Marching Forward” and the history of Jones HS In addition to praising his great work, I wanted to share how powerful the day was for my students and me. Thread 1/9. ucf.edu/pegasus/tale-t…
1. Prof Cassanello spoke about this local historically black high school through the lens of the history of school segregation, racial discrimination, and the history of Central Florida
2. The students were fascinated to hear how important education was to African Americans during Reconstruction precisely because it had been denied them during slavery
3. They were astonished to hear about the 20th C history of the KKK in Orlando, and the cross burned in 1952, possibly protesting the construction of the new Jones HS bldg, and the assassination of Harry and Harriet T Moore Christmas Day that year
4. Several students marveled that this history was new to them and asked about the history of racism in Central Florida, the history of the Confederate flag, and about Jones alumns who staged sit-ins at local lunch counters
5. And one student, a woman of color, who had herself attended a historically Black high school out of state, thanked Prof Cassanello saying she didn’t usually hear the history of *her* people (emphasis mine). And I was sad but knew it was time to listen, and NOT talk
6. I’m sad because despite my new efforts to decolonize the class and include PoC, women, and LGBTQ images and voices, it isn’t yet enough to make her feel represented in the class. And,
7. I’m sad because she feels that Ancient Greek and Roman, and European Renaissance, and 17th-19th C Humanities and history are not also *her* history. She and other students of color don’t see these ideas as part of their own legacy.
8. So, I know that I have to do better and there is so much more work to do. Because this history and these ideas are hers as much as mine AND because I, we, have failed in not including them in the grand narrative of “Western Civilization” (ironic quote marks intentional)
9. So I will keep working to make my courses more inclusive and endeavor harder to help my students see themselves represented. Because our future depends on it 
