"History doesn’t just sit in textbooks—it lives in the way we parent, work, eat, and even rest. Many modern behaviors that seem “normal” are actually survival strategies passed down from oppression, slavery, and colonial control. These systems were designed to control, exploit, and assimilate. But because they’ve been passed down for generations, we rarely stop to question them. And that’s how oppression becomes the standard (and the tradition). When we blindly accept societal norms, we uphold the systems that created them. What’s considered “proper,” “respectable,” or “professional” is often just a reflection of colonial ideals, designed to strip marginalized communities of their autonomy, culture, and dignity. It’s important to reconsider this concept of “preserving the past,” especially when a lot of our (American) history is shameful, exploitative, and dehumanizing. Progress towards a more inclusive and kind world comes from dismantling the parts that were never meant to serve us. ...