#4. “Does how we understand the Reconstruction Era matter today?

Does our understanding of past influence our choices in the present?

Why?”
Our past influences our present, and future. People who are raised to think that racism is

right, more than likely obtained this view from previous generations. A past full of hatred

produces a present full of hatred unless there are fundamental changes. Moreover, if our past did

not consequent our present than the world we know today would not exist. All the economic,

social, political, technological, philosophical, and scientific achievements we have made thus

then would be just a dream. Consider Foner’s statement that “The heroes of the story were the

self-styled Redeemers, who restored white supremacy in the south.” People raised on plantations

passed down from their ancestors who already have this complex that discrimination is just, will

go to school and affirm what they already know to be true. “In other words, he would in all

probability complete his education without any idea of the part which the black race has played

in America...” (Du Bois). Du Bois says that history should be “set down with accuracy” and used

as a “guidepost for the future,” but if the information we receive is whitewashed why is the right

to an education important? What is the purpose of education if it cannot simply provide the us

with the information to not make the same mistakes once more? What would be the purpose of

education except to lead us back from whence we came? The concept of misunderstanding the

past could lead us to the pre- civil war era all over again. Where whites deemed African

Americans inferior and less than human. Where whites killed 70,000 (that were accounted for)

Native Americans due to the mental disease of white supremacy and the ignorant decree of

Manifest Destiny.
 Initially, Blacks were not allowed the right to an education. Since then, more people are

learning the true history of our ancestors. We have learned that basic rights that fall under the

definition of democracy are still being “contested.” For example, the states of this nation still list

in their constitutions that slavery is legal by punishment. During the voting period citizens were

asked whether slavery should once again be legal, 31.8% of Nebraska’s population voted to keep

slavery as punishment an option. Year 2020, fifty years after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, one

hundred and fifty-two years since the 13 th Amendment; and we are still trying to pry into the

heads of the ignorant that Black Lives Matter. This goes to show how profoundly important the

past is. If the advocators of the BLM movement did not learn the truth of how strong and

determined our ancestors are, I personally do not think as many of them would have brought the

injustices transpiring in our community into the limelight.