Moscow’s Twisted History Lessons – NYTimes.com

April 1, 2015 / Debbie / Leave a comment

Nationalists of all stripes have been particularly adept at distorting history to serve their own purposes. Once again, nationalism and its sidekick “selective history” have been on the rise, most notably in Russia. Vladimir Putin is a master of exploiting nationalism in the pursuit of power. Recently, as noted by Maxim Trudolyubov, Putin declared: “‘It’s time to stop taking note only of the bad things in our history and berating ourselves more than even our opponents would do,’ he declared at the annual gathering of international Russia experts known as the Valdai Discussion Club in 2013. ‘We must be proud of our history.’” Sound familiar?

Read Trudolyubov’s entire article here:

Moscow’s Twisted History Lessons – NYTimes.com.

Georgia Senate targets AP history courses as too ‘radically revisionist’ | www.ajc.com

March 14, 2015 / Debbie / Leave a comment

Following Oklahoma‘s example, Georgia conservatives are trying to undercut the Advanced Placement US history courses in their state. On March 11 the Georgia Senate passed a bill (SR80) that threatens to defund the program if they do not get what they want: a mythic history promoting American “exceptionalism” and the unfounded assumption that this is a Christian nation. They complain that the AP course as it stands “glosses over or inaccurately reflects people and ideas including the nation’s Founding Fathers, the Judeo-Christian influences on the country’s development and U.S. foreign policy as outlined in the Monroe Doctrine.” If they get their way, this would set a very bad precedent in which an ideologically driven legislature can dictate what counts as history. We all need to speak out against this blatantly partisan attempt to hijack education for ideological purposes!

Senate targets AP history courses as too ‘radically revisionist’ | www.ajc.com.

Can teaching patriotism protect France? – Ideas – The Boston Globe

March 4, 2015 / Debbie / Leave a comment

Robert Zaretsky argues that teaching patriotism and national values in France could make a difference in dealing with their Muslim population. Although he admits, “Singing ‘a Marseillaise’ or reciting the Pledge of Allegiance may not be enough. But if teachers can help students want to live up to those ideals, and live together, it may be some kind of beginning.” I think that Zaretsky has confused the universal ideals (Liberté, égalité, fraternité) championed during the French Revolution with patriotism/nationalism. Fostering nationalism in schools is the exact opposite of what they need to do! Instead they need to start living up to their professed universal values (something we need to work on as well). Anyone familiar with the history of nationalism would balk at the suggestion that patriotism is the solution.

Can teaching patriotism protect France? – Ideas – The Boston Globe.

Update on the Japanese ‘Comfort Women’

January 2, 2015 / Debbie / Leave a comment

More attempts by the Japanese government to deny the use of comfort women by the Japanese army during WWII. Nogawa Motokazu gives an update on the situation in Japan and concludes: “These moves of the government and the ruling party not only prevent any improvement of Japan-Korea relations but also inflict a second victimisation on the victims of Japanese military’s wartime sexual slavery, who are still living in many parts of the world. We should never forget this.” Read his entire article at:

History News Network | New Attack on the ‘Comfort Women’.

Credit: Robert G. Fresson from the New York Times article: “The Comfort Women and Japan’s War on Truth” (November 14, 2014)

Pressure in Japan to Forget Sins of War – NYTimes.com

November 1, 2014 / Debbie / 1 Comment

“Coming to terms with its militarist past has never been easy for Japan, which tried to set aside the issues raised by the war as it rebuilt itself into the peaceful, prosperous nation it is today. But pressure to erase the darker episodes of its wartime history has intensified recently with the rise of a small, aggressive online movement seeking to intimidate those like Mr. Mizuguchi who believe the country must never forget,” Martin Fackler wrote in The New York Times. Fackler recounts the successful attempt by a far by a far right nationalist group of “cyberactivists” known as Net Right to halt the erection of a memorial in the tiny village of Sarufutsu, where “[a]t least 80 Korean laborers died of abuse and malnutrition here as they built an airfield at the behest of the Japanese military during World War II.” This group is using intimidation to stop what it sees as blights on the image of the nation. Unfortunately, in this case they succeeded and work on the memorial came to a halt.

These nationalists believe that they are restoring honor to the Japanese nation but what is more honorable: Admitting your sins and trying to make amends or covering them up?

Pressure in Japan to Forget Sins of War – NYTimes.com.

History News Network | Some in Japan want to deny “comfort women” were employed in WW II. They need to watch this.

October 24, 2014 / Debbie / Leave a comment

History is the tool of nationalists everywhere. They believe that greatness is perfection. Therefore, they must whitewash the past. The result is the creation of a mythic past that must be protected at all costs. As a result, they lash out at anyone who would taint their beautiful picture. Those who dare to do so are seen as enemies of the nation and deserve only contempt and hatred. Unfortunately, nationalism has been on the rise recently. Pride in one’s nation is only natural but when it turns to arrogance it becomes a divisive force that can turn violent if it is not checked.

The Japanese (as well as others) have never really confronted their past but they had been heading in a more honest direction until the recent rise in nationalism. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, has recently requested that the Education Ministry approve only patriotic textbooks (i.e. books that deny the crimes committed by the Japanese during WWII). (see The New York Times) The fact that “several members of Abe’s cabinet are gearing up for a demand that the [Kono] statement [that admits responsibility for the comfort women used by the Japanese soldiers during WWII] be withdrawn next year, the 70thanniversary of the end of World War II” (see article) is only the latest indication of a troubling trend. Unfortunately, this trend is not limited to Japan.

I believe that nationalists have it backwards. Whitewashing the past is not the path to greatness; confronting the past is. The real heroes in this story are those like Matsumoto Masayoshi (see video at link below) who are willing to speak out in order to bear witness to the atrocities that they witnessed. Japan can only be respected if it is willing to admit their mistakes. The nationalists are wrong to believe that erasing the past will restore honor to Japan.

History News Network | Some in Japan want to deny “comfort women” were employed in WW II. They need to watch this..