Teaching the History of Slave Rebellions

Too often we are told that slavery consisted of docile humans and their oppressive masters. But, the true history that we should be teaching our kids is a story of unceasing rebellion. 

On the most recent episode of Freedom Friday, returning guest and Director of Social Studies Curriculum at Philadelphia Public Schools, Ismael Jimenez joined our CEO, Chris "Citizen" Stewart to discuss the part of slavery that we frequently fail to teach our young people. 

Chris and Ismael discussed the lessons we can take from slave rebellions throughout history and how we can ensure our education system adequately covers the whole story of slavery, not just the whitewashed version. Ismael shared the importance of noting that historically, rebellion took many forms, not just limited to the stories of runaway slaves or large-scale revolts. 

For example, while some schools might cover the rebellion led by Nat Turner and the violent aftermath, stories are just now being uncovered about individual slaves mailing themselves to freedom in the North.