I read Jelo’s post, and we both started our response by writing about the moment Gregory described as the first time he felt shame. Jelo also wrote about Gregory probably experiencing shame before that, when he was forced to sit in the back of the class, in the chalk circle. Jelo also wrote about having similar experiences with being hungry and not being able to concentrate.
One of the most significant things to happen in our history was the Civil War. Soon after the North won, Lincoln was killed, and his plans to fix the post-war country never happened. Instead, his vice president Andrew Johnson was made president and put in charge of fixing the country. Johnson was racist and a former slave owner, and chose to forgive the Southern states and give them back their power. This inevitably lead to Jim Crow laws and oppression over former slaves that was basically slavery in itself.
Theres no way of knowing what might have happened if Lincoln wasn’t killed, but it’s likely that he would have been able to implement his plan and make a better post-war country. Many racial issues we have today can be traced back to this time period and the way that those in charge handled things, such as racism, systematic racism, and police brutality. People of color are still fighting for equality through BLM, and these are issues that could have and should have been addressed following the Civil War.