"A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots," said Marcus Garvey. He is absolutely correct. Without understanding how you arrived makes it increasing difficult to know where you are headed - and more importantly - how to get there. African-American history is a broad, massive and intricate subject with world-shaking events that have dramatically, in some instances, shaped American history. However, African-American history has often been reduced to a handful of people, memorable moments and events. Undoubtedly, most people remember courageous stories like the Underground Railroad, the famous "I Have a Dream" speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the Nat Turners rebellion, or plight of the Tuskegee Airmen. But the black experience is simply too important to be identified by only a few significant and important events to know and remember. Discover the people and events that shaped American history. From builders of the world's first civilizations, and Kings and Queens in Africa, to slavery in America and the Civil Rights Movement. From Sojourner Truth, the first woman to ever sue and win a case against a white man, to Benjamin Bradley, who built a working steam engine from two pieces of scrap metal and a barrel. From Cathay Williams, the first African-American woman to enlist in the military when women weren't allowed to Robert Carruthers, who invented the ultraviolet camera NASA used when it launched Apollo 16 in 1972. As African-Americans, it is imperative to understand our heritage and history. While America traditionally revels in either Civil War battles or founding fathers, many great contributions of African-Americans have widely gone unrecognized, but we cannot forget. In an effort to honor African-Americans expansive and growing history, we must pay tribute to the struggles and achievements of the people and events that have shaped our nation. Color 'n America has taken the appropriate steps to ensure the preservation of African-American history. Snapshots of African-Americans are seen in different stages of history, without a summation to any one topic or event. Only when you put all the pieces together, can you truly see the bigger picture, and understand where we are in forging ahead to a better future. After all, knowing the past opens the door to the future. The past is all that makes the present coherent, and our common heritage is all that binds us together.
