Why is leaving strong legacies such an integral part of breaking the cycle of depravity for African-Americans?
During institutional slavery, those physically enslaved in the U.S. identified with the children of Israel: Moses, Joshua, and Elijah became their heroes. African slaves learned the biblical stories, and the victories of the people of the Bible became their legacies. Knowing these stories, Africans were able to endure the worst slavery ever devised by man! Now, I think we are in big trouble because we have a generation that doesn’t read or even understand what took place during the Civil Rights Movement. When we don’t recognize our heroes, we become adrift. We must make sure the educational process includes our heroes, too. Who are your role models? Martin Luther King Jr., pastor and civil rights leader, for his speeches on the primacy of love and forgiveness. [Bishop McKinney and his wife, Jean, met and marched with Dr. King on several occasions in the 1960s. They attended a conference with him eight months before his death.] Bishop Charles Harrison Mason, 1897 to 1963, the founder an
