If African Americans wrote textbooks then students" views of this country's history would be very different than has been the case. An African American would focus more on the history of their ancestors, and not as much on the history of white Americans. They would describe the troubles and hardships that their ancestors had to face over the course of this country's life. The main events that forged America would be the same as described in current textbooks, but the angle at which they are examined would be opposite. When describing the early years of America they would focus on African Americans brutal journey from their home in Africa to America, and how they were forced into slavery. This would portray a much drearier picture of American history than that which is seen in current textbooks. The role that African Americans played in this country would be gone into with much more detail and understanding as well. Today's textbooks lack the viewpoint on this country's history of the many minority groups that the population consists of. In order for the people of this nation to learn it's complete history these alternative views must be present in the classroom, as the classroom is the basis of all students" knowledge.
Over the past couple of decades America's sense of its history has begun to evolve and incorporate into it the many different stories of its diverse population. This change can be accounted for by the increasing diversity of the population, and the increasing acceptance of minority groups in this country. As the number of minorities increases their stories have begun to be told along with the traditional ones. Before the civil rights movement races were segregated and as a result so were their histories. White American history was accepted as the true American history, because this group made up the majority of the population. With the abolishment of racial borders minority groups have begun to blend in with the majority.