Black Studies Relevance

Like all other cultures, Black Studies has a lot of information that can be learned. I believe that an African/African American/Black Studies curriculum is relevant because it is a different culture that people should know. There is so much history in the African American experience that it should be taught. In the textbook, Karenga states that “Black Studies is an important contribution to humanity’s understanding itself because African people are the fathers and mothers of both humanity and human civilization” (pg. 21). I do think this is a bold statement, but does have some truth. The lives of African Americans have suffered through so much and are an important part to learning more about our society and how to make it better, as well as learning about the past and how the culture began. There are many other contributions that a curriculum of Black Studies brings. The relevance is stated, by Karenga, as being “a contribution to the rescue and reconstruction of Black history and humanity” (pg. 23). This statement allows the curriculum to bring knowledge to people and the hope of truth to people to help bring change. It is important to know about a culture different than mine and the sacrifices made and life altering experiences Blacks went through. Black Studies also is “a contribution to the development of a socially conscious Black intelligentsia and professional stratum” (pg. 24). This contribution allows intellects to help improve society for the present and especially the future. The experiences from the past can help us as a society learn from our mistakes and take what happened to make our future a better one. We have all had our rough times, but it is important to become knowledgeable about what has happened to those in the past so we can have a better tomorrow.