N.Y. ACA Law § 57.51 — New York Code / Act ACA / Title U / Article 57-B / Section 57.51
Legislative findings
Status: in_force

§ 57.51. Legislative findings. The legislature finds and declares\nthat:\n  1. During the period beginning late in the fifteenth century through\nthe nineteenth century, millions of persons of African origin were\nenslaved and brought to the Western Hemisphere, including the United\nStates of America; anywhere from between twenty to fifty percent of\nenslaved Africans died during their journey to the Western Hemisphere;\nthe enslavement of Africans and their descendants was part of a\nconcerted effort of physical and psychological terrorism that deprived\ngroups of people of African descent the opportunity to preserve many of\ntheir social, religious, political and other customs; the vestiges of\nslavery in this country continued with the legalization of second class\ncitizenship status for African-Americans through Jim Crow laws,\nsegregation and other similar practices; the legacy of slavery has\npervaded the fabric of our society; and in spite of these events there\nare endless examples of the triumphs of African-Americans and their\nsignificant contributions to the development of this country.\n  2. All people should know of and remember the human carnage and\ndehumanizing atrocities committed during the period of the African slave\ntrade and slavery in America and of the vestiges of slavery in this\ncountry; and it is in fact vital to educate our citizens on these\nevents, the legacy of slavery, the sad history of racism in this\ncountry, and on the principles of human rights and dignity in a\ncivilized society.\n  3. It is the policy of the state of New York that the history of the\nAfrican slave trade, slavery in America, the depth of their impact in\nour society, and the triumphs of African-Americans and their significant\ncontributions to the development of this country is the proper concern\nof all people, particularly students enrolled in the schools of the\nstate of New York.\n  4. It is therefore desirable to create a state-level commission, which\nshall research and survey the extent to which the African slave trade\nand slavery in America is included in the curricula of New York state\nschools, and make recommendations to the legislature and executive\nregarding the implementation of education and awareness programs in New\nYork concerned with the African slave trade, slavery in America, the\nvestiges of slavery in this country, and the contributions of\nAfrican-Americans in building our country. Such recommendations may\ninclude, but not be limited to, the development of workshops,\ninstitutes, seminars, and other teacher training activities designed to\neducate teachers on this subject matter; the coordination of events on a\nregular basis, throughout the state, that provide appropriate\nmemorialization of the events concerning the enslavement of Africans and\ntheir descendants in America as well as their struggle for freedom and\nliberty; and suggestions for revisions to the curricula and textbooks\nused to educate the students of New York state to reflect a more\nadequate inclusion of issues identified by the commission.\n