Students gathered in Teachers College Wednesday to learn a quick lesson in the culture and backgrounds of African Americans.
Gilbert Taylor, curator for the Crispus Attucks Museum in Indianapolis, spoke to a group of 20 students as part of the first installment of Black History 101, a series held in honor of Black History month. Taylor discussed the history of African-Americans and the trail of African influence from Ancient Egypt to present day.
He began with the story of Crispus Attucks, a man famous for being the first casualty of the American Revolution. Attucks died during what became known as the Boston Massacre of 1770.
"I felt a lot of information was shared that I was not aware of," sophomore Raykisha Smith said. "We need to have more speakers come out and talk about our history, ancestors and heritage."
Besides Attucks, Gilbert also spoke of several historically famous blacks, from George Washington Carver to Marcus Garvey, and used African and West-Indian artifacts, some of which had their own stories.
He discussed what he called "a fantastic culture." He also went into detail about many of black history's great leaders whose morals stemmed back to Africa, in areas such as economics, entrepreneurship and agriculture.
Junior Michelle Hudson said she was intrigued by all she had learned in just one session.
"It was very enlightening," Hudson said. "I learned more about my history as an African-American woman (tonight) than in any other history class I've ever had."
According to Gilbert, history tells the stories of many ancient African tribes who traveled from Africa to the Americas. As a result, many of the African tribe descendants were formed, most famously the Mayan Indians.
Gilbert also discussed ancient African tribes, and spoke of the Moors, who ruled the country of Spain for almost a decade, and the Olmenecs, who are early descendants of the Mayan Indians. Gilbert also noted that the country with the largest African-American population outside of Africa is Brazil.
Sophomore Russell Hale said the discussion was very informative, and that more students of color should take advantage of the many sources and opportunities to learn their roots.
"We need to take the initiative to learn more about ourselves," Hale said. "If the university is not going to provide the proper classes, then it is up to us to learn about our history."
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