The most recent stop we made was at Romulus High School, in southeast Michigan. The entire school gathered in the auditorium ready to cheer on their four fellow students competing for the scholarship and I was sitting in the audience ready to watch. It was Valentine’s Day, so there were balloons, flowers and teddy bears everywhere adding to the students’ excitement level. But as soon as the first contestant started her performance, you could hear a pin drop. As the students expressed what black history meant to them, I couldn’t help but to ask myself what it meant to me. As a 23 year old, white, female many people would assume that black history has very little meaning to me. But it does… it actually means a great deal to me because of the way that it influences my family.

I come from a very large, close, loud, loving, Italian family. About ten years ago, my older cousin married an African American man and now they have three beautiful children. When their three children were little, I babysat them, spent time with them, attended their soccer games and dance recitals and, most importantly, loved them. It would break my heart if I knew that someone treated my little cousins differently for being biracial. But that is not the case in their lives thanks to the African Americans who came before us who were brave enough to fight for equal rights and respect, while informing and educating other Americans about diversity so, today, people like my cousins could be looked at for who they are inside, and not for the color of their skin.

Each time I visit a school with the “Know Your Black History Tour” I learn more about the people who came before me and strived to make our country a place of love and respect for all.

Check out the performances from Romulus High School. I hope they inspire you to ask yourself, what does Black History mean to me?