Point of View on History War

The famous Taiwanese director Wei Te-Sheng said in his fundraising for his new trilogy project about Taiwan’s History, “we need to know our past before we can create our future” (Wei). His quote suggests that people need to know who they are to come up with directions for the future, which is why controlling the narrative of history could change a whole nation. History wars have been repeated intensely worldwide because history curriculums have been significantly used for nation-building, causing great controversies because of the power and racial hierarchies they promote. Instead of only teaching history through the leans of those in power, we should teach students the history of their land objectively and include ethical studies to learn about their roots and build their self-identities and be respectful towards cultures other than their own. We should also teach students to think critically and question the unspoken so they can judge the information they received, give meanings to the past, and work for a better future.

The perspectives implemented in history curriculums are very important for nation-building because it rationalizes the unequal structures of the society and maintains authority within the nation. Nationalism, common values, past, and enemies are often crucial for a nation to be strong and stable. Therefore, people in power, often the Europeans and American settlers, use history education and scientific logic to reinforce the nation’s divisions. According to the book Education and Empire, Stratton disclosed that these educational curriculums “normalized for students the ‘natural’ hierarchies of the world and nation in which they lived” and “provided students with a worldview organized according to the principles of race, environment, and nationalism” (18-19). This suggests that by making racial and power hierarchies seem natural and absolute, the government made non-European or non-American citizens feel like second class citizens, justified their unequal actions indoctrinate minorities of patriotism despite the poor treatments they experienced. Stratton explained that the Americans accomplished these through teaching students “to divide the world into meta-geographical and racial categories” and then used the science of evolution and social Darwinism to validate the “survival of the fittest theory of human inequality,” showing that the Americans manipulated scientific theories to prove themselves as the superior populations (17). Stratton also pointed out that the professionals who designed the curriculums claimed that they provided “objectivity and historical truth” (19). On the other hand, they also used history education “as engines of legitimating the social and political order” (19). This means that those in power were very intentional in what they taught and used the curriculum to strengthen the nation’s power and control.

In cases of settler colonialism, the colonizers also used education as a soft way to rationalize their invasions and assimilate the colonized people by promoting patriotism values, morals, and cultures. The colonizers would make education accessible to the original population, which seems like creating a more advanced environment for the people. However, its true purpose would be to eliminate the original past history and focus on, in the case of an United States colony, Americanization. A good example would be Puerto Rico, which remained an unincorporated territory with the US. It was mentioned in Negotiating Empire by Del Moral, “education and schools were at the heart of US imperial intentions” (7). One of their intentions was to convert “colonial subjects into ‘tropical Yankees’” as they “uplift the new colonial subjects with the broader framework of white supremacy in the nation and empire” (7). According to Del Moral, the US accomplished this through “the teaching of English and the celebration of US history and patriotism” in which they embedded American daily rituals and celebrations to “inculcate students with a love of all things American” (7). This shows that the US puts in a lot of effort to shape their colony through the education system in Puerto Rico in able to make the Puerto Ricans second-class citizens who would abandon their own cultures and believe that the US values are were superior. The power of this history education should not be underestimated. As Kilemi Mwiria wrote in his paper Education for subordination, “the curriculum of any given school system is likely to have a major impact both in determining a person’s after-school occupation as well as in conditioning his mind to look down upon his own culture in favor of the of the oppressor” (268). Mwiria’s words remind people of how influential education could be in affecting the one’s life and opportunity after school and also being more loving and loyal to a country that is not his or her own.

Due to the great consequences that a biased education could lead to, history should teach students about their the past objectively, including diverse aspects of ethical and cultural studies, instead of focusing only on nation-building. All lands carry stories of the people who once lived there and are currently a part of the community. Equality is something that all nations should pursue, especially in a time where most countries have a complex mixture of populations. Therefore, history curriculum should reflect the history of all people in the nation in an unbiased view. As shown in the documentary Precious Knowledge, one of the Mexican students mentioned that he felt like the typical history contents were very against him to a point where he would feel as if “they don’t want me here” because of his heritage. This proves that history educations need to be diverse and include everyone; otherwise students would feel excluded and lost when the curriculums never cover or even attack their cultures. The rejection could only lead to problematic outcomes, such as dropouts and hatred towards the nation. Unfortunately, society is far from perfect, and there is still a lot of injustice within our community. However, by learning about the imperfection in the current system and the path that brought people here today, students, especially of minorities, could understand that it is not their fault for the status quo but rather long history of systematic racism. This is why history needs to be taught objectively and people should have the courage and wisdom to examine it. As pointed out in the documentary, people should be taught to “have the courage to look at history for what it is” (Precious Knowledge). It is through this liberation of the faults that could bring people one step forward in liberating all systems of oppression. The ethnic studies program in Tuscan highlights the importance of teaching students about their culture and heritage so they could figure out who they are and who they are inside (Precious Knowledge). It is through “establishing a strong sense of self-knowledge of the past” that people would be able to use it and turn the knowledge into purpose and a “creative approach to the future” (Antonetty). Through unbiased history learning, students could form pride in their heritage, learn to recognize and respect cultures that are not their own, and come up with solutions to better improve society.

While it is essential to provide objective history contents in education, it is also crucial to teach students how to think critically and question the unmentioned. There will always be inevitable biases when people describe historical events because of the stances people have. Therefore, students should have critical thinking abilities to analyze the events and develop their own opinions. The Puerto Ricans show such an ability as Del Moral mentioned, “students and parents voices boldly emerged and challenged the assumptions held by Puerto Rican educators and US colonial administrators” (19). Puerto Ricans had the ability to questions the information they are were receiving, which enabled them to hold onto values that they think thought are important within their cultures instead of being fully Americanized. Students should be encouraged to investigate “the silences that truly need to be understood as our collective human experience” as those are the stories that would provide a more holistic perspective of history and fill in the missing puzzle pieces (García-Peña). The Puerto Ricans had the strength to decide what they would believe and were thus less manipulated from the use of history education as propaganda. This should be a capability that all citizens carry across nations. Sadly, countries worldwide are full of people hungry for power and control and ignorant about the social justice problems that have long been unsolved. Therefore, it is necessary that people learn to question the information they see and not be manipulated by governments. As explained by Lorgia García-Peña in her interview about removing ethnic studies in universities, “if we fail to prepare our students the weapons to critically question received knowledge or to fight inequality, then we are destined to reproduce it. We miss one of our best opportunities to fight oppression. We give more power to white supremacy” (García-Peña). People must think critically to be free from the chains of ignorance and the government’s maneuvers. People must be able to see through the systems of oppression to pursue and demand a better future.

History wars have been fought over and over since the colonial period to the present day. The question of whose storied to be told and what contents should be taught is still in great controversy because of its capability to manipulate what people would know and believe in. Rather than forming patriotism by eliminating minority history, history should teach children objectively about the past that has happened to their land and cover ethnic studies that would allow students to form their self-identities and respect others. It is also critical to have the students prepared to think critically about the information they receive and question the unexplained. If one of our goals is to develop patriotism, then one must embrace all our ancestors’ mistakes. Only when everyone is living in true equality would people love and loyal to their nations wholeheartedly.

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Antonetty, Evelina, L. “La Herencia de Nuestros Niños,” 1974, Box, Folder, UBP, Inc. Papers, El Centro.

Del Moral, Solsiree. Introduction: Hacer patria. Negotiating Emprie: The Cultural Politics of Schools in Puerto Rico. by Del Moral. University of Wisconsin Press, 2013, pp. 3-23.

García-Peña, Lorgia, and Lyon, Mordecai. “Decolonizing the University.” Boston Review, 8 June 2020, bostonreview.net/race/lorgia-garcia-pena-mordecai-lyon-decolonize-university.

Luis Palos, Ari Luis and Eren Isabel McGinnis, directors. Precious Knowledge: Fighting for Mexican American Studies in Arizona Schools. Kanopy, 2011, www.kanopy.com/product/precious-knowledge.

Mwiria, Kilemi. “Education for subordination: African education in colonial Kenya,” History of Education 20:3 (1991): 268.

Stratton, Clif. “Geography, History, and Citizenship.” Education for Empire: American Schools, Race, and the Paths of Good Citizenship. University of California Press, 2016, pp. 16-29.

Wei, Te-Sheng. “Taiwan 400 Years Film Series:Taiwan Trilogy Film Fundraising Project-Phase 1.” https://taiwantrilogy.com/. Accessed 4 October 2020.