A Backward Glance Forward: Past, Present and Future Perspectives on Historically Black Colleges and Universities

Abstract

The American dream lies at the very heart of the American cultural ethos. At the center of the American dream is the emphatic conviction that, in this society, education opens the door to success. The belief that even the poorest American can achieve greatness with talent and hard work is one of this society's cherished cultural ideals (Hochschild, 1995). In most instances, talent is equated with educational attainment. African Americans have embraced these beliefs to the extreme. Dating back to when Black slaves were [End Page 241] forbidden to learn to read and write under threat of physical harm or death, we have invested education with mythic qualities, seeing it as our hope and salvation for the future. No matter how much education African Americans achieved, they still suffered discrimination based on skin color. Nevertheless, Black people have continued to crave and to embrace education as the ultimate solution. Despite the paradox of societal stereotypes of Blacks as lazy, ignorant and mentally inferior--even as America developed history's most elaborate institutional barriers to deny African Americans equal access to learning and knowledge--Black people continued to pursue education. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) grew out of and were shaped by this striving of African Americans for education. These institutions have embodied the hopes and frustrations of a people seeking the Promised Land.