This is an article from the New York Times in 2019, and discusses the impact of black lives on American history. The headline of the story makes it inviting and wanting to read more in bold print it reads “Our democracy’s founding ideals were false when they were written. Black Americans have fought to make them true.

The story opens up as a narrative, as if you are the one writing this story. It goes into detail of the writers father as well as their childhood home. There is a sense of pride and patriotism right from the get go when the writer talks about flying the American flag outside of their home. This takes a sudden shift to a darker America that many want to bury away and forget. A picture is painted of the deep south during the times of cotton mills and black people slaving away from dusk until dawn, and suddenly the story and the headline start to collide. The reader is introduced to how the writers father was raised and the conditions they had to live through, it then goes into more detail about his family, his mother, grandmama, etc. It discusses the rights, or lack there of, Black Americans had during these trying times.

A good chunk of history that is commonly wrong in history is that all of the northern states were welcoming of blacks and all of the south was not. Even when Jim Crow laws were put into place the idea of the “Promised Land” or the northern states was not necessarily the dream come true many blacks had hoped for.

The story continues when the writers grandmama packed up her family’s belongings and traveled north with her children in hopes of a better life outside of the south. That better life was a struggle to get to, even though we are well into the 1950’s and 60’s finding a job as a black women in most parts of the United States still meant cleaning or nannying for white families, the writers father also struggled with work during these times until eventually joining the army.

So far the story does a great job in diving into the characters background and history, as you read through the article your heart starts to break and eyes water thinking that not even 100 years ago black Americans were still struggling so much in this country. Once the Civil Rights Act and Movements happened many dropped the issue and thought “hmmm black people are equal to me, a white person, okay” yet people did not put in the work and effort to make these individuals their equals. The story does an excellent job of painting a picture of the heartache, struggles, and fight black Americans had to face.

The story continues with the writers father joining the army, and how he hoped it would make for a better life. Unfortunately that was not the case, even when he served his country, and fought side by side with his white brothers and sisters he was passed up and looked down on for the color of his skin. The writer talks about seeing her dad face these struggles and never understanding why her dad continued to fly the American flag outside of their house when she was younger, because she didn’t understand how her dad could have pride for a country that brushes him and his hard work to the side. As the writer got older she had a revelation and came to understand why her dad continued to fly the United States flag with pride. It was because the United States did not become one of the greatest countries in the world just by the white folks. It was through the blood, sweat, neglect, and care of the black Americans that made the United States what it is today. Although throughout history blacks were enslaved, treated poorly, etc. they also were the ones working their asses off to make sure the white people they worked for were successful.

The story continues to talk about Black accomplishments and how they were commonly forgotten or not talked about compared to white wealth throughout history and in schools.

Overall, I think the story followed the martini glass structure of journalism. The reader sees the header and knows what the story is going to most likely be about, then it starts off introducing important characters, it paints a picture of a black family’s life, then it dives into the raw stuff. The story takes a turn and talks about the history of black lives and how history isn’t always accurate. Then it goes into more factual information, only to end with the writer and her family again. It was a nice way to tie up a story and I thought the structure did a great job of presenting facts all while following a story of a girl and her father. I think this story is just as important and accurate today as it was a year ago when it was written.