“Revulsion” and “pain and despair” are not the same thing.
“Revulsion” is what you might feel if you feel historic responsibility for slavery.
“Pain and despair” is what you might feel if you feel you are a direct victim of its consequences.
This revulsion is a good thing. It feels good to be revolted by something so obviously revolting, and it can keep you motivated to do something about it.
Indeed, this is why it was made required reading.
Pain and despair are not good things. It feels bad to be in pain you can’t control. And it doesn’t motivate you to do something about it, but instead keeps you down by making you believe nothing can be done about it.
This pain and despair is how slavery still lives on today.
No one should be made to feel pain and despair.
But the point is that the students who read this may be in either group.
And the other point is that the required reading list was created before this second group was discovered. It was literally unknown to the science that these people existed (this is not about responsibility, regardless of that, it just makes one question the quality of the work that was done)
So that’s why it shouldn’t be required reading anymore.
