A Woke History Lesson

When I taught History and the class discussed the Declaration of Independence I always emphasized Thomas Jefferson’s words “all men are created equal.” The obvious question presented to the students is what did Jefferson mean by men. The answers from high school and college students were the same; white, male, 21 years old, Christian, heterosexual, wealthy (landowner). Jefferson was a revolutionary because he and the signers of the Declaration were declaring themselves equal to the King of England and the Nobles of England.

The American Revolution was a success. Jefferson and the revolutionaries proved themselves to be equals to the nobility of England and they planted the seed of equality that grew in America. My classes came to the conclusion that the American Revolution changed to an American Evolution and redefinition of 'all men'. We are still fighting but think of how far we have evolved since 1776. We as a nation have struggled to overcome the prejudices that crippled us throughout our history.

In this lesson my class would explore the ugly side of our past and saw the direction of correction that our history has taken. This is what WOKE is. It is not an attack on American culture; it is an honest study of our past with an admission of our mistakes and shortcomings.