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High school senior Tariah Hyland says she hasn't been taught much about Black history during her 12 years in Delaware public schools. (Courtesy of Tariah Hyland)
Tariah Hyland learned about slavery and Black civil rights icons like the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks during her 12 years in Delaware public schools.
“And then if we’re lucky, Malcolm X,’’ Hyland told WHYY News. “Even then we still aren’t really taught the truth about their work and what they fought for. It’s almost like watered down and diluted knowledge about these very powerful leaders.”
So Hyland, a senior at St. Georges Technical High School who co-founded the Delaware Black Student Coalition, jumped at the chance to help make Black history part of the mandatory curriculum in K-12 schools, rather than merely an afterthought or part of February’s Black History Month lessons.