More Than Dirt & Bones: A People Unearthed

I found this lecture both informative and interesting. I think that I may have liked this lecture more than the previous ones because this was a lecture about than just concepts. The site and the bones/artifacts are tangible. I can go see them so this lecture was easier to wrap my head around. Although I live in NYC, I had never even heard of this burial site until the first week of freshman seminar. Initially I thought that it would be just several skeletons a few feet apart. I did not realize that this would include the skeletons of babies or such things as shells worn by people. I also never realized just how much it is possible to find out from bones. I was really fascinated when Dr.Mack spoke of the woman who's muscles had torn and the woman who was shot and took some time to die. This reminds me of when people speak of the thousands that lost their lives on 9/11. One may feel sadness but it is not until faces and individual tales are put to the story that one understands the full magnitude of the circumstance. As silly as it may sound, I always thought of working in the fields as unbelievably hard work but I never thought of it as physically breaking the body down one muscle and limb at a time.

I am not completely certain that I understand the podcasts but what I think they are trying to emphasize is the importance of the burial ground to not just Africans. Several faiths and cultures are connected by way of the site. In my opinion, Howard University was chosen because it is an HBCU with scholars who have the capacity,tools,connections, and legacy to carry out the necessary research. Being that Howard is an HBCU, taking part in this project would mean that the importance and appreciation for the African burial ground would not be lost; it would be magnified. I am proud of HU's contributions.