To learn about your people, history you should read
This is what I had heard all along indeed
Diligently I read all textbooks in history assigned
That the content could be anything but gospel truth never crossed my mind
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I must say I’m embarrassed to state
That after all these years, of late
I’ve begun to question, begun to doubt
The veracity of everything I’d read throughout..
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Those who wield the pen of historic strokes belong
To the group in power, the group that is strong
The victor’s point of view is reflected in history that’s written
The voice of the oppressed remains from the world hidden..
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My people were colonized, therefore
Once I realized this I could not be sure
Whether the history I read was an accurate representation
Of events as they happened, or was there some fabrication?
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Yes, many of my ancestors recorded their history too
I try to read their work but it’s true
That in regional languages I cannot read
I read translations in the colonizer’s language indeed!
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Though we live in a post-colonial era, we are
Steeped in a colonial mindset so far
It is time to cast off the myth of colonial supremacy
Our authentic history with a fresh perspective see
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Let me learn history the right way
The powerful and the rich have always had a say
Let me now find stories of those who were colonized…
Bring forth the voices of those who went unrecognized
Passion...unbridled 