RECONCILIATION MID-TERM


       Reconciliation means the end of conflict or renewing of a friendly
relationship between disputing people or groups. I feel this word can be
describing personal feelings as well as representing a group or groups of
people. I believe reconciliation can only happen if all ‘conflicting’
peoples come to a mutual agreement. As a mixed Black woman adopted to a
White family, I have been asked many times what I feel can mend or
reconcile the history of the enslaved blacks.  Through these questions I
have come to the belief that there is no way to go back into the past and
reconcile what pain and destruction has happened to the enslaved and
oppressed of this country. Through education I have found that many
peoples of color in the United States and the Americas were oppressed and
enslaved. The key word here is education. I feel this is the most direct
and healing way to ‘reconcile’ the past.
       My theory is, if we were given the truth about our government and
political history and be more educated about the enslaved and oppressed at
the time we are learning about President Grant and Jefferson, we can be
more aware of what needs to change and what changes may or may not have
been a mistake. The pains of separation and division are un-mend able, but
I believe there is healing and understanding through education. I plan on
educating myself to my own history first then engaging in the stories and
histories of others in the pursuit of an educational reconciliation.
     As you may know my program is to find who my birth mother and father
are. Once I find this information, to then go further into as much
personal genetic history as possible. Where we came from and how we ended
up here in the Americas and specifically the United States. I will also be
journaling and documenting my research with a final presentation of a
short story of my search and experience and how I believe that finding my
birth family is a step in personal reconciliation as well as national
reconciliation.
    Due to this project’s openness I would like to request to present my
project at the end of the year. If I find my birth family and history
before the year is over, I plan on continuing with the reconciliation
process by recording and interviewing people of diverse American
backgrounds as well as researching the public school systems and possibly
working with people across the country in this process of reconciliation.
     I would like to request David Rutledge as my faculty leader to work
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