Amid protests for and against the removal of the Confederate flag from the grounds
of the capitol in South Carolina, debate erupted not only over the civil rights
movement; it evolved as an argument over the importance of the meaning of
history. On July 10th, 2015, the
Confederate Flag was removed from the
grounds of the state capitol of South Carolina. Many had argued that the
Confederate Flag was a symbol of heritage in the South and a memory of
ancestors that had died in the Civil War. Some of these ancestors fought
in the war because they felt that states’ rights were being compromised and
that too much power had been consolidated in the federal government; not
necessarily because they felt strongly about maintaining the slavery system.
However, despite this historical truth, for some the flag held another
very powerful and painful meaning: the fight to preserve the evil of slavery.
In choosing to remove the flag, the government of South Carolina took a
balanced look at the history of the issue and demonstrated how to make an
informed decision.
It is
undeniable that the study of history is essential to addressing modern day
issues and to evaluating the complexities of the problems today. It therefore
comes as no surprise that history is a relatively common major at Bowdoin
College. However, the condescending attitude toward history does come as shocking.
Many students feel that studying history is a useless or inconsequential
academic pursuit. It’s common enough for someone to joke about how the past is
dead, or about how history is somehow becoming irrelevant. But sometimes
criticism goes farther than just a few jokes. A classmate of mine at
Bowdoin says that “It’s been sometimes challenging for [her] justifying [her]
history major to people back home, or even [her] family occasionally, as
history as a discipline isn’t traditionally seen as particularly lucrative.”
However, the more I follow current events and issues, the clearer it
becomes to me that a thorough understanding of history is absolutely essential
for our discussions of social justice and progress.
The
American Historical Association (AHA) recently prepared a report on the state
of history departments across the country in a variety of schools.
Although the report was generally positive and showed that the total
number of history majors has been growing recently, others put forward statistics that point to a less rosy reality of history’s
place in academia. These statistics show that although the major is
technically growing in terms of total number of students, in recent years the
growth has seriously slowed. At the same time, growth in many other majors has
been increasing. This could have something to do with changing attitudes about
college degrees in our culture. As a college degree is seen as
increasingly important in an increasingly competitive job market, more and more
students feel the need to pursue a degree that will put them on track for lucrative
job opportunities. The AHA has also found that this trend of a decline in the study of history is not confined to
undergraduates,but can
also be seen in those
pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees.
Of course,
studying history is not an inconsequential pursuit, but one necessary to making
real change in our society, changes that we can feel confident are for the
better. President Obama touched on this idea in his recent
eulogy for
Clementa Pinckney, the reverend of the church in Charleston that recently was
the site of a racist shooting of nine members of the community. Just before the
end of the speech he states, “history can’t be a sword to justify injustice, or
a shield against progress, but must be a manual for how to avoid repeating the
mistakes of the past.” Examples of the abuse of history are common enough
in America today. We see those who claim that racism is no longer an issue
support their arguments by citing the end of slavery 150 years ago. However,
these arguments ignore the long history of racial subjugation after the Civil
War. This oppression manifested itself in many ways, both through unofficial
but conventional practices and by state-sanctioned measures, such as poll taxes
or Jim Crow Laws. However, these historically revisionist arguments don’t
just apply to racial histories. Similarly, many who argue that gay marriage
shouldn’t be declared legal under the constitution invoke the religious beliefs
of the founding fathers. An honest invocation of this history would depict men who
set up the American government to be completely devoid and independent of any
religious authority.
It is
essential that people who advocate for one side of important social issues,
such as the removal of the flag, understand the history of the issue. It
is always possible to simply take a stance on an issue because one is convinced
one is in the right. But without looking at all sides and perspectives
(including the historical perspective), a complete argument for one’s cause
cannot be made. When someone takes a stance without looking at and
explaining all sides, it becomes difficult to maintain support from others on
the issue and to defend against an opposing argument. However, if someone
can express the whole history of the issue, their position becomes more
meaningful and persuasive. In South Carolina, law-makers understood the
historical significance the Confederate Flag held for some of their white
constituents. The fact that they understood these sentiments and still
chose to remove the flag makes their decision all the more meaningful. Their
decision to remove the flag represents an awareness of historical significance
and the choice to raise justice and equality in its place.
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