Image taken by Rylan Branch
Wednesday April 14, 2016

Freedom Of Thought

Freedom of thought (also called the freedom of conscience[disputed – discuss] or ideas) is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, independent of others’ viewpoints. It is different from and not to be confused with the concept of freedom of speech or expression.

Source (Read More): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_thought

Moral Of The Story (And This Is Important Because?)

For those interested in knowing my thoughts, the image above as the feature header of this post is of a monument that I came across yesterday afternoon while out and on my business handling mission, and it led to some self analysis and self discovery because in all actuality, I consider writing and creating as my form of what is often referred to as an escape, yet when I take advantage of the freedom to really think about it, in all actuality, whatever it is that I would be looking to escape from, was in essence, written and created by someone, somewhere, at some point in time, which is most likely why it was at one point illegal for slaves to be taught how to write in the United States of America.

Education During The Slave Period

Carolina passed the first laws prohibiting slave education in 1740. While there were no limitations on reading or drawing, it became illegal to teach slaves to write. This legislation followed the Stono Rebellion. As fears proliferated among plantation owners concerning the spread of abolitionist materials, forged passes, and other incendiary writings, the need to restrict slaves’ ability to communicate with one another became more pronounced. For this reason, the State Assembly enacted the following: “Be it therefore Enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That all and every Person and Persons whatsoever, who shall hereafter teach or cause any Slave to be taught to write, or shall use to employ any slave as a Scribe in any Manner of Writing whatsoever, hereafter taught to write, every such offense forfeit the Sum of One Hundred Pounds current Money.” While the law does not clarify any consequences for the slaves who might attain this more highly prized form of literacy, the financial consequences for teachers are clear.

Source (Read More): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_during_the_Slave_Period

Again, it’s just something to think about, with the valuable freedom that one may have to think with and consider this enlightening perspective with.