The textbook is African American Odyssey Volume 2, 6th edition (5th edition is also acceptable) by Darlene Hine, et. al.

THE ASSIGNMENT IS

In preparation for the 1st Discussion (which you should treat as an ESSAY):

(1) Please read my paper "Promises and Pitfalls of Reparations" which is accessed thru the website of the journal Socialism and Democracy, click onto Back Issues and then click onto issue # 31, scroll down to the title of article and click on it.

(2) Review Chapter 12 page 302 (the topics are Special Field Order #15 and The Port Huron Experiment in case you have a different edition) and the two websites on "40 Acres and a Mule" which have been posted in the recent Announcement.

The debt of 40 Acres and a Mule, which was promised but not delivered by the US government, is one which African Americans are acutely aware of. If you are not African American, you may have never heard of the phrase before, but is well known the black American community.

Your discussion/essay should center around the following issues:

(1) Was the concept of "40 Acres and a Mule" familiar to you before taking this course, and if so at what level or depth were you familiar with the concept? If you never heard of it before what is your reaction to the information?

(2) Is there a connection between contemporary issues of poverty in urban and rural African American communities and the historical injustice of enslavement? Demonstrate why there is or is not such a connection.

(3) Should society rectify such issues, and if so how, and if not why not?

The parameters of of your original post should be a minimum of 400 words, maximum of 650 words. In your Discussion/Essay you must demonstrate that you have done all of the reading though you, of course, have the right to agree or disagree and express your own opinions.

Read Chapters

Chapter 12: THE MEANING OF FREEDOM: THE PROMISE OF RECONSTRUCTION, 1865-1868, pp. 298-323 and

Chapter 13: THE MEANING OF FREEDOM: THE FAILURE OF RECONSTRUCTION, 1868-1877, pp. 324-347

Please read them before reading my article "Promises and Pitfalls of Reparations".