SAVING OUR DEMOCRACY
STEP ONE: THE TELLING OF OUR HISTORY
The telling of our history is highly polarized. Story One paints a picture of “the good old days” when the world seemed right and white. When white supremacy ruled the day and people of color “knew their place” and were kept in their place. When our nation embraced Christian values and schools taught patriotism and loyalty. Story Two tells a story of racism run rampant. A history of Jim Crow, public lynchings, and brutality. Later replaced by segregated housing and schools. Voting rights made difficult if not unattainable. Terrorism quick to surface as the recent murder of George Floyd exemplified.
Examples of our polarized history abound. Critical Race Theory and 1619 vs. 1776 are just two of the many. The backlash against the teaching or even mentioning of critical race theory in the classrooms has brought people to the streets demonstrating in droves. The fact that two events that occurred within weeks of each other in the fledgling early settlement of Jamestown in Virginia in the hot summer of 1619 that shaped the course of our history is painted as “un-American” and “un-patriotic.” To tell this story of our founding history will make students “feel uncomfortable” and must be banned from their history texts.
What can we learn from our past that speaks to our present? Our present being highly polarized and our democracy in danger. And given the polarization in the telling of our history how do we bridge that polarization which is critical to save our democracy?
We must speak to the legacy of our most important founding values: Freedom and Equality.
Our nation was founded on ideals and values. Identifying and embracing those founding ideals and values are the most important challenge we face in our bridging model. Our most important values and ideals are the inherent equality of all human beings and their endowed right to freedom. This is the story that must be told of our history.