Growing up in Orangeburg, I didn't know that I lived in the 'corridor of shame.' I was the son of a single mom who learned to read from comic books. My grandparents helped raise me.
Every February, we reflect on and honor the achievements, struggles, and icons that comprise Black history. As a proud, Black man running for office and raising two young, Black boys in the South, I am acutely aware that I stand on the shoulders of giants.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the importance of honoring the contributions of Black figures in history while acknowledging personal responsibility as a leader and role model.
In this quote, Jaime Harrison reflects on the significance of Black history, touching upon the challenges and triumphs that have shaped the community. He conveys a deep sense of pride in his heritage, recognizing that his own achievements are built upon the legacy of influential Black leaders and icons. This acknowledgment extends to his role as a father, where he strives to instill the same pride and awareness of their history in his sons, ensuring they understand their roots and the giants whose efforts have paved the way for their future.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared during Black History Month celebrations to inspire discussions about heritage.
More from Jaime Harrison
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In 1917 European history, in the old sense, came to an end. World history began. It was the year of Lenin and Woodrow Wilson, both of whom repudiated the traditional standards of political behaviour. Both preached Utopia, Heaven on Earth. It was the moment of birth for our contemporary world.
History never really says goodbye. History says, 'See you later.'
No history is mute. No matter how much they own it, break it, and lie about it, human history refuses to shut its mouth. Despite deafness and ignorance, the time that was continues to tick inside the time that is.
I was 21 and looking for work in 1932, one of the worst years of the Great Depression. And I can remember one bleak night in the thirties when my father learned on Christmas Eve that he'd lost his job. To be young in my generation was to feel that your future had been mortgaged out from under you, and that's a tragic mistake we must never allow our leaders to make again.
When we dwell on the enormity of the Second World War and its victims, we try to absorb all those statistics of national and ethnic tragedy. But, as a result, there is a tendency to overlook the way the war changed even the survivors' lives in ways impossible to predict.
In short, Europe’s colonization of Africa had nothing to do with differences between European and African peoples themselves, as white racists assume. Rather, it was due to accidents of geography and biogeography—in particular, to the continents’ different areas, axes, and suites of wild plant and animal species. That is, the different historical trajectories of Africa and Europe stem ultimately from differences in real estate.