The 1619 Project Should Be Read In School Argumentative Essay Example

The 1619 Project should be read in school because its collection of narrative articles emphasize that the US is not really as great as it is thought to be. The events that students learn in school are what the government wants them to learn. Only rarely do people see examples of what these events looked like from another’s point of view. The 1619 Project is a synthesis of many narratives written from the perspective of people who had been oppressed or had different ideologies from the US.

One of the most important reasons why the 1619 Project should be taught in schools is because of the inability for Americans to appreciate the efforts of black people. In “The Idea of America” by Nikole Hannah-Jones, the narrator describes her life while growing up black in the US. “How could this black man, having seen firsthand the way his country abused black Americans, how it refused to treat us as full citizens, proudly fly its banner?” Given that this took place in the late 1970s, much of the racism still remained even after the many civil rights movements. The black people have made tremendous contributions to the US, such as fighting for them and building upon their land. Despite all these assistance from the black people, the Americans still were racist and didn’t treat them the same. What’s even more surprising is that the narrator’s father still proudly hung the American flag even after all of this. He was so desperate to fit in with society that he was going to go to any length and do any amount of work required just so he would have even the smallest chance. “He would be discharged under murky circumstances and then labor in a series of service jobs for the rest of his life”. The narrator’s father wanted to be recognized as part of the American community so much that he even joined the military for that. Even after doing all of that, the Americans still treated him as their subordinate and inferior them in any way possible. The Americans would continue their treatment of black people and refuse to acknowledge the black people’s contributions to the country.

Another reason why the 1619 Project should be shown is because of the horrible things that the Americans did to black people. In “The New Orleans Massacre of 1866” by ZZ Packer, black men were peacefully gathering when a group of white men came and began to shoot them. “Just hours earlier, all of colored New Orleans in their finest had come out: veterans from the Louisiana Native Guards had amassed at the procession’s front, joined by one or more bands that began to blaze and bray their trumpets and trombones once struck up by some hidden concertmaster.” The black people were peacefully gathering together. In a way, the gathering could also be thought of as a celebration because of the way it's described. Then, the group of white men came and just opened fire on all these unarmed men. A majority of the people who were shot were black people, even though there were white men in the gathering. This shows that given the choice between shooting a black man and a white man, the terrorist group would choose the black man. While it may be argued that they’re terrorists and don’t represent the entire American population, the majority of the population did think in the same way; they just didn’t show it. “The ride to the Freedmen’s Hospital killed a few who weren’t yet dead. A jolting ride over cobblestones, banquettes, undone roads, bricks...”. After the military took control of the situation, they ordered for the injured men to be taken to the nearby hospital. However, the trip there was very rough and resulted in the deaths of many people. This shows how much value the people put in the lives of black men. They were only saving the black men because it was their job. As a result, they decided to not treat them as well as some of their other patients. This ignorance on their part yielded more deaths only. Undoubtedly, most of the Americans probably didn’t care too much about these extra deaths either. The Americans’ attitude towards the black people is one that is very negative and degrading to the policy of social equality.

Because the 1619 Project shows the US in a negative point of view, it should be taught in schools because the students deserve to see the entire truth and not just what the government wants them to see. Because of the freedom of expression, the government should not be able to control what the students learn. They should be able to learn the entire truth, which includes the American point of view and other suppressed points of view.