Mike Weedall's Blog

One of the books I’ve been reading is David McCullough’s “History Matters.” Has there ever been a better writer who can synthesize vast amounts of detail and craft it into understandable perspectives on how we should be perceiving and acting in today’s world?

In 1995, McCullough wrote, “What history teaches, it teaches mainly by example. It inspires courage and tolerance. It encourages a sense of humor. It is an aid to navigation in perilous times.”

These are perilous times, much more so for minorities in America. As the calendar turns to February, Black History Month, it calls us to reflect on the struggles of African Americans and the guidance we should glean today.

Courage. Persistence. Belief. Strength Together. Creativity. Refusal of bondage. There’s so much more.

Whether it was Martin Luther King organizing boycotts, Black Panthers building breakfast programs for hungry students, Harriet Tubman initiating the Underground Railroad, or any of the innumerable acts of resistance, as McCullough states, we need reflection to guide us today.

To me, one of the greatest examples of resistance and courage lies in the over fifty documented Maroons that existed in the South before the end of the Civil War. Each one cries out that those stolen from Africa would not accept bondage. Freedom, no matter the extreme conditions that had to be endured, would be achieved.

The pettiness of the current administration in removing exhibits and monuments that tell the story of the largest Maroon in the Great Dismal Swamp demonstrates their fear of history. In too many National Parks and facilities, the voices of ancestors are being stifled. These acts will only succeed if we let them.

As McCullough summarizes, “History shows us how to behave. History teaches, reinforces what we believe in, what we stand for, and what we ought to be willing to stand for.”

Not only in February, but the struggle for freedom and equality by African Americans and all disadvantaged groups should guide us each day of the year. That is what this administration fears.     

PS—I’ll have more to say on this subject about the history of the Maroons in North America over the next few weeks. I hope you will follow me at mikeweedall.blog.