DGS49
Diamond Member
The recent trend of destroying and removing statues of important historical figures is disturbing on a number of fronts. Sixty years ago when I was studying American history, we were always cautioned to remember that people lived in their own times, and conduct, attitudes, prejudices, and customs change over the years. Things that were absolutely normal or even well respected in different eras may be rendered rude, unacceptable, or even evil a few generations later.
In the early 20th century, eugenics was considered quite progressive, and was looked upon as a way of improving society and even the human race at large. Now, it is considered racist and everyone (except Margaret Sanger) who supported it is being "cancelled."
Slavery, of course, is the Big Banana, and everyone who owned slaves or didn't actively fight for the emancipation of slaves is considered evil. Any accomplishments in their lives are wiped clean, regardless of them magnitude or continuing importance. Everyone who fought for or supported the Confederacy is presumed to be an evil, slave owning bastard, and any discussion of other reasons for the secession are dismissed as trivial or simply diversions.
The entire country is deemed to have been obsessed with the campaign to "keep the Black man down," despite a complete dearth of evidence to support that thesis. And despite the fact that only a small percentage of Americans ever owned slaves or benefitted from their labors.
History teachers who do not season their teachings with cautions about context are committing pedagogical malpractice. It worse than even ignoring the history they claim to be teaching. The fact that this nonsense is going on PRIMARILY on college and university campuses is a huge indictment of Academe itself. If THESE people don't understand and accept the reality of context, then who, exactly, can be depended upon to pass along our history productively.
And it seems to me likely that a hundred years from now - assuming our descendants are not all burned alive by global warming - WE will be looked on as dubious characters for one thing or another that has changed. Kids will be asking their parents if it is true that people in the 21st century were still feeding themselves on cooked animal carcasses???
In the early 20th century, eugenics was considered quite progressive, and was looked upon as a way of improving society and even the human race at large. Now, it is considered racist and everyone (except Margaret Sanger) who supported it is being "cancelled."
Slavery, of course, is the Big Banana, and everyone who owned slaves or didn't actively fight for the emancipation of slaves is considered evil. Any accomplishments in their lives are wiped clean, regardless of them magnitude or continuing importance. Everyone who fought for or supported the Confederacy is presumed to be an evil, slave owning bastard, and any discussion of other reasons for the secession are dismissed as trivial or simply diversions.
The entire country is deemed to have been obsessed with the campaign to "keep the Black man down," despite a complete dearth of evidence to support that thesis. And despite the fact that only a small percentage of Americans ever owned slaves or benefitted from their labors.
History teachers who do not season their teachings with cautions about context are committing pedagogical malpractice. It worse than even ignoring the history they claim to be teaching. The fact that this nonsense is going on PRIMARILY on college and university campuses is a huge indictment of Academe itself. If THESE people don't understand and accept the reality of context, then who, exactly, can be depended upon to pass along our history productively.
And it seems to me likely that a hundred years from now - assuming our descendants are not all burned alive by global warming - WE will be looked on as dubious characters for one thing or another that has changed. Kids will be asking their parents if it is true that people in the 21st century were still feeding themselves on cooked animal carcasses???