The NY Black History Panel Wants To Know What The Holdup Is!

New York wants to be the leader in introducing black history classes into the public school system.Or so the Amistad Commission thought!It's been 4 years since a law was passed to promote the teaching of black history & nothing has transpired!Here's more from the NY Times:

"Nearly four years after New York State passed a law creating a commission to promote the teaching of black history in public schools, the commission has never met, and 5 of its 19 seats have yet to be filled. For many educators and parents, the Amistad Commission, named after a slave ship seized by its captives, has become a modern-day symbol of bureaucratic inertia.

“New York, a pivotal state in African-American history, has not taken the lead here and we’re languishing,” said Manning Marable, a Columbia University professor of history and public affairs who was the first member appointed to the Amistad Commission. “It’s not just for black people, it’s for everyone. You can’t teach the history of this country effectively without teaching the contributions and experiences of black people.”

The Amistad Commission was modeled after a similar state commission in New Jersey that was established by a 2002 law requiring state schools to make black history part of the required curriculum. At least five other states — Florida, Arkansas, Illinois, Colorado and Michigan — have also adopted legislation requiring or encouraging the teaching of black history in schools, often along with the experiences of other minority groups, according to the Education Commission of the States.

The “Amistad” name comes from a schooner that was carrying a cargo of African slaves who revolted and killed the captain and cook in 1839. The slaves were captured and charged with murder, but with the help of former President John Quincy Adams, won their freedom through a United States Supreme Court ruling and returned to their homeland. The slave revolt was the basis for a popular movie, “Amistad,” in 1997.

In New York, the Amistad Commission is charged with surveying school curriculums to find out how much is included about “the African slave trade and slavery in America” and to make recommendations for improvement. Currently, schools are required to cover slavery, including the Underground Railroad and the freedom trail, as part of instruction in human rights issues for grades 8 to 12, according to the state education officials.

“That’s kind of laughable,” said Dr. Marable, the Columbia professor, who has been developing a Web site on black history for educators and parents with $240,000 in grants from the Ford Foundation. The Web site, known as the Amistad Resource, will feature texts, documents, and film and audio clips of civil rights demonstrations and other events.

Assemblyman Keith L. Wright, who sponsored the law creating the Amistad Commission, said that far too many students still “think of slavery as a Southern institution that happened below the Mason-Dixon line.”

“I don’t think enough black history is taught,” he said. “It’s too bad that Black History Month is the shortest month of the year, but it is what it is.”(END OF EXCERPT)Read the rest here.

This is an interesting video that shows black history being taught to Brownsville,NY students.