The year 2005 seems to be a long way from the treacherous slavery days that my ancestors had to encounter. Being that my history of African progeny has partially been lost due to the racial disparity that has clouded a true sense of who I am. In 2005, I believe that slavery still exists. Not in forms of the physical torture, the chains, as well as the pain. I am referring to the mental and spiritual forms of slavery that still exists today. Suppression of a whole race is nothing uncommon in humanity. Also, it is not new or limited to a single ethnic background. As Maya Angelou agrees in this expressive poem, "The Black Family Pledge" she writes down in poetry my thoughts about not knowing (Understanding) my heritage.
             In this literature work, Angelou acknowledges the fact that the "black family" needs to think back, and appreciate the struggle that our ancestors went through. She stresses the importance of our forgotten history that is not allowing us to progress as a
             people. She gives us this clear reason by reason by using the "because". In every stanza, she uses the word and it is a clear-cut example of cause and effect. The poem emphasizes the abandonment of actual knowledge of our people to the children. Therefore, she is concerned about a generation that will grow up without a purpose. We all know that if you do not know where you come from, then you will not know where you are going. This ultimately is what Angelou is emphasizing strongly in this piece.
             The last stanza in the poem is Maya Angelou's solution to the problem that exists. Without a proven leader these days, she is articulating that we as a people have to be our own solution to our problem. We have to agree that we will use ourselves, as tools to fix what was broken for over 200 years. Although the task may seem overwhelming, it is not impossible. It is a mission that has yet to have been completed. Once...