Of One Blood
"Undoubtedly your Afro-Americans are a branch of the wonderful and mysterious Ethiopians who had a prehistoric existence of magnificence, the full record of which is lost in obscurity."
-Of One Blood, p.99
"It is hard to believe your story. From what a height must this people have fallen to reach the abjectness of the American Negro," exclaimed a listener.
"True," replied the Professor. "But from what a depth does history show that the Anglo-Saxon has climbed to the position of the first people of the earth today."
-Of One Blood, p. 101
"...return and restore the former glory of the race."
-Of One Blood, p. 101
I've actually had this selection saved in my drafts since last week, and until today's class I didn't exactly know what I wanted to post using this selection. Today's class discussion focused in the restoration and excavation of African-American history rather than the reconstruction or reparation of the race's history, which can be seen in the selections above. On page 98, Hopkins uses the Professor to tell the story of ancient Ethiopia. I believe that Hopkins uses this story to demonstrate the significance of Ethiopia as the genesis of civilization. She even uses Biblical genealogies, as well as scientific evidence(whether it is real or factual, I don't know) to propel the story. Hopkins suggests that canals (traffic, defense, irrigation), lakes (water storage, land fertilization), astronomy, philosophy, and chronology can be traced back to the Ethiopians. A listener states that the race has fallen from this magnificence; however, the Professor suggests that the race hasn't fallen from that glory, but that history only shows the rise of the Anglo-Saxons as the first people or civilization. So, it is not a matter of making a new place in history for the race, but rather a restoration or return to the magnificence that is already there--a reclamation of history.
