I’m accepting the challenge laid down by old college radio friend and prolific content producer Keith Knight, who spoke this past Martin Luther King Jr Day at the Gloucester Meetinghouse Foundation. Keith, a very successful comic strip creator (The Knight Life, K Chronicles, (Th)ink), social activist, author, rapper, and co-creator of the television series, Woke, has found numerous ways to tell stories loosely based on his life and experiences as a Black man.
On MLK Day, Keith, who has never shied away from issues regarding race and identity and often infuses his work with a wry sense of humor and satire intended to prompt awareness and conversation, talked about how Black History is American History. But if you want to learn about it, you’ll need to do some digging. Don’t wait for someone to come along and teach Black history to you, seek it out on your own – and if you do your research, you will be rewarded – it is there!
“If you want to learn about Black history, go talk to a Black person over 65 for ten minutes and listen. They’ll teach you more about Black history than any history book,” he told us.
He challenged other marginalized groups to do the same. If you are Asian or Latinx and you want to learn about the impacts your people have had on our country, research it yourself. Don’t wait for someone to come along and do it for you.
I love a good DIY challenge!
I know there are disabled people who have impacted all of our lives in very positive ways, and we don’t know their stories. That’s a shame! We tend to look at disability as a negative, but that’s not healthy for anyone – especially not me! Keith pays homage to his heroes by drawing them and attaching quotes in single panel cartoons. I can’t draw for shit, but I can research and learn about impactful people with disabilities, pass it along to you, and reframe the way we all look at disability, including the way I look at it and myself.
I welcome you to join me on this journey.
Duke of Dead Air 