Reflection on American History Class

Reflections on Class
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Department of ABC, University – Whitewater
ABC 101: Course Name
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Reflections on Class
In an era where almost every aspect of life is influenced by technology, STEM subjects seem to be considered the most important. This type of talk is common among students and in public discourse. However, the first lesson I took from this class is that history is as equally (if not more) important. I learned many things about American history in the class, including the precursors to the American Civil War, like the Raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859. The key lesson here is that lessons from the past are important in informing how we engage each other in the future. Slavery, for instance, was once an acceptable norm despite how inhumane it was (Corbett et al., 2014). Understanding the history of slavery is important because it informs the future.
The second lesson I gathered is that those in power write history. This is particularly important if those in power are oppressing another group. In essence, as outlined by Locks et al. (2013), when those in power write history, the voices of the oppressed are lost, and no one gets to tell their story. Hence, when people history later in the future, they only get the oppressor’s point of view on events. In...