Some of us may consider history to be a boring subject, but everything about who we are, who our families are, our friends, and our fellow human beings, is a culmination of a long chain of events that pushed and pulled people and groups of people in one direction or another. One small event centuries ago can have a huge snowballing impact on the events of today. Today many live in the shadow of imperialism, slavery and persecution. These things can partially explain relations between races, religious groups and countries. The history is complex and often is written by the victor. Some stories may have multiple versions, but the impact that these stories have today cannot be disputed.
For example, every year we celebrate Columbus Day. In school we learn about Columbus’ arrival to the Caribbean as being peaceful and equitable, but it was anything but. The Spaniards murdered and enslaved the native people rather quickly (Zinn, 1980). In “A People’s History of the United States”, the author describes how the Spaniards became more and more arrogant with each day, and even began refusing to walk anywhere, instead riding the backs of native slaves. Instead of the romantic explorer we learn about, Columbus was heavily involved in forcing the natives to mine for gold so that he had something to show the King for his expensive expedition (Zinn, 1980).
This relationship has carried through the ages, and this feeling of superiority over the natives carried into the history of our own country. The genocide of American Indians was ruthless and thorough. It was a story of broken treaties, moving boundaries and atrocities. Many schools have begun to touch on these subjects, but in some they are ignored entirely.
It isn’t only the distasteful parts of US history that are ignored. 31 states don’t require the teaching of Holocaust history in schools, a topic which many would agree is critical education for understanding the consequences of institutional discrimination (Karimi, 2021). If we are neglecting such huge moments in history, then we are not likely touching on nuanced stories like the arrival of Columbus. We may not like hearing these stories, but if we don’t, then we may not understand why we are where we are. This denial allows us to ignore modern issues, and as is often said, history repeats itself.
References
Zinn, H. (2003). A people’s history of the United States: 1492-2001 (New edition). HarperCollins
Karimi, F. (2021, May 29). 31 states don’t require schools to teach about the Holocaust. some laws are changing that. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2021/05/29/us/holocaust-marjorie-taylor-greene-states-trnd/index.html
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