Everything is big in Texas, except for the sections in their textbooks dealing with the African American experience. According to washingtonpost.com, this year state guidelines do not include the Ku Klux Klan or Jim Crow laws. They also downplay the role slavery played in the Civil War and list it as a “secondary cause.”

This may be product of educators trying to “sugarcoat” history. This view has motivated many textbook writers and teachers to find ways to teach the lessons presented in history without actually having to go through the horrid and consequently awkward situation created by presenting raw history in all of its gruesomeness.

“We want our textbooks to say ‘Yeah! I’m glad I grew up in America,’ but that isn’t really the goal of history, it should be more like ‘That was horrible and we shouldn’t do that anymore,’” Michael Daly, social studies teacher, said.

African American history is one of these gruesome stories, which is one reason why it is often dialed back and sugarcoated when presented to the young and impressionable children of America.

“We are a culture of nice people,” Darlene Donegan, social studies teacher, said. “Many people are afraid of the truth.”

Because such historical events are often served sunny side up, the quality of history taught, and ultimately, understanding, is diminished.

But not only are the more visual details missing, the African American face doesn’t often seem to be put alongside success stories in history books. It is often paired with oppression and struggle. This is a blow to the minds of African American teens who already see negative pictures of themselves in the media.

“I feel like history just isn’t on our side, and then the media isn’t on our side either so how am I supposed to have the motivation to be successful if I have always seen success as a rare thing in my heritage,” Kyeoni Rutledge, sophomore, said.

The African American Experience class at U. City delves into further detail about African American history.

“African Americans were an essential component of U.S. history,” said Donegan. “So it should be deeply ingrained in the study of U.S. history, but it is not. Giving African American studies a separate course as an elective only decreases the importance of the African American experience in this country.”

With major elements of African history eliminated from more and more social studies curriculums, classes like the African American Experience class serve to fill the gaps.

“Most kids think African American history starts as slavery and that they magically were slaves one day and I like to let them know the origins of Africa and about the awesome civilizations that were the birthplace of mankind,” Matt Horn, African American Experience teacher, said.