History as a tool of empowerment

Shanna Savio took a group of her students to Africa this past summer, just in time to commemorate the 400 years remembrance of the first slave ship to land in America.  “The 400 years commemoration –August 20, 1619-2019--was perfectly timed for me. We took a group of young adults ages 18 to 30 to Ghana for 10 days. They visited important sites including the Cape Coast Castle, which houses the ‘door of no return.’ They waded through Ghanaian culture and history while there.” She said she teaches the student to focus on themselves as individuals and self-awareness. 

“We want them to focus on their own path to greatness, what they want to do in five, 10, and 15 years. We want them to explore difficult questions about themselves. Who do they see themselves to be?” Savio said.

Prior to their Africa trip, they went to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African-American History in Washington, D.C.

“I think that experience opened their eyes to the importance of history as a tool for self-empowerment. History doesn't always have to be focused on the bad things so it's doom and gloom. It's really a way to give you confidence in knowing that if your ancestors were able to take all of this hurt and all of this pain, all this tragedy and turn it into the world's best music, culture, and art. Why can't you? You know things are better now. They may not be a whole lot better but they're better. So, I think to be able to see that and then convert that to themselves knowing what their strengths are.” 

Savio said that growing up, the history books were glossed over, especially slavery and American history. As a teacher, Savio says that young people and most Americans are not interested in history.

“Americans are fairly ahistorical. I think as a culture we're very much focused on the now and in the future and less on the past. And so that it wasn't a surprise to see that many of the young people that I’m working with were not taught a lot of history in school. Like I was I wasn't really taught a lot of history in school either. Because of my desire to understand, I started to do a lot of digging on my own. The museum does a wonderful job of visually representing things. It's a multi-media multi-sensory experience. So, you're hearing things and you're seeing video. They have this interactive lunch counter that's a touch screen where you can pick your own adventure from the Civil Rights movement. It can take you down different paths based on your answers. So, that museum was the best way for US history to come alive,” Savio said. 

When asked how would she teach slavery to students, Savio said she would look at age and grade level.

“It depends on the age. A young child is not going to really understand the complex nuances of slavery in ancient Greece and Egypt. But by eight years old children realize that there are inequities in society. I would start in the United States. Mainly because I feel like Black American culture is so influential throughout the world. Even if you come from somewhere else, you know and understand Black American culture. You've been exposed to it by age 8. I would bring up inequities, lack of resources and freedoms taken away.

When asked about ways that people can commemorate these 400 years, since the average person may not be able to go to Ghana, Savio said she believes in dialogue.

“I honestly believe in having conversations. There's a whole generation of older people to talk to. And they have stories to tell. Our history is their history. And it's a good way to connect with people in your lineage, share photographs, family stories, tales and things that happened. That's a way to do it.  Have lunch with an older person or take them out to dinner. Ask elders questions about their life what it was like for them as a child. There probably will be things that are the same and things that are very different.”

Solutions and Reparations

For solutions, Savio said that she is pleased to hear and see conversations about reparations. 

“In terms of positive things that are happening in 2019, there are conversations about reparations. Because I don't think that it should be a sacred cow that no one touches in order to really figure out what we're going to do as a country.  We have to grapple with this really nasty history that we have. And keeping it in the closet isn't going to do that. So just to have conversations about slavery and reparations are big steps. There's still a lot more to go but it's much better than it was. Hearing these conversations in the halls of power are possible now. There’s hope.“

Shanna Savio is an educator, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Grow House NYC. Shanna’s passion for helping nontraditional students is a result of her own interrupted educational background. She attended Spelman College on scholarship, majoring in Education Studies. She was sexually assaulted during that time, which caused a gap in her education. That experience served as a catalyst for Shanna working with learners whose education occurs outside of the traditional classroom setting.

Listen to Shanna’s full conversation below: