Standing up for our History and our Freedoms
The history of our country needs to be preserved but there are those individuals, groups and some organizations that want to change the content of our history in addition to removing it altogether in some respects. The content of school textbooks was the first wave of changing how the history of our country is presented for the leaders of tomorrow and once it is gone we may never get it back. This may not be the case in every school but the question is who really makes the decisions as to what textbooks should present regarding our history and other topics. Much information can be learned through books but what does the information contain? It is the true facts about our history or other subjects or is it someone’s opinion or philosophy. We as Americans must stand up when the content of textbooks in our schools are more of indoctrination than a learning experience.
Textbooks from what I have read and understand as to how content is written leave much to be desired. Today it seems it is not about presenting the facts regarding the path our country has taken but presenting information in a politically correct environment. It does not matter if it changes information as to why certain events occurred and the conditions which caused them to take place.
We have many places where information about events in our history are on display but if the movement now taking place has its way these places and in some cases institutions may disappear. They present information as to our true history and individuals; groups or organizations involved in this movement do not want the real facts to be available for all of us including the future leaders of our country and society. We as a country must stand up for the facts surrounding our history and this includes our judicial system. We cannot let our historical facts become distorted where our real history may be forgotten forever.
Decisions made in our judicial system in some cases also leaves a lot to be desired when they side with groups who want to rewrite our history and present a different perception as to what really took place. Our judicial system needs to honor our Constitution and the history of our country before we forget what really happened. We as individuals who have grown up with the true story of our history will not be available to let future students know the true facts about historical events and why they took place.
Individuals also want to get rid of statues of historical individuals or monuments which played a significant role or had a significant impact on events throughout our history. One of the primary comments which have been reported is that they are offended by these individuals or monuments and they want to push their distorted philosophy upon all of us. Politics appears to be a part of this movement when decisions are made to side with these individuals. Statues and monuments have been around in some cases for over one hundred years and one who must make decisions regarding these statues or monuments must ask themselves if we should change something that a small fragment of our society wants to get rid of. Statutes, monuments and in some cases institutions are not an endorsement of any philosophy regarding events in which they were involved, they are just statutes.
There are many statutes, monuments and institutions which have been a part of the history of our country and just because an individual, groups or organizations want them removed or destroyed does not mean they should be removed or destroyed. This does mean that all individuals like or dislike any of these items but they are a part of our history and should remain intact. History is a teacher and we can learn from history in some respects. Decisions sometimes resulted in mistakes and remembering them gives us the opportunity to learn from them and potentially avoiding repeating the mistakes of the past.
We are a country where majority should take precedent with regards to decisions being made by politicians regarding movements of this nature. It is time that we as a country stand up for what is right and say enough is enough and we are not going to take it anymore. We have the right of free speech under the Constitution and these groups and others have a right to have their voices heard even if we do not want to hear them or dislike what they have to say.
This movement is not just about the situations which have been discussed above but it goes much deeper. Freedom of religion is also another aspect of individuals trying to restrict our rights to pray. Freedom of religion and the right to express it is also in jeopardy. There has been an incident where an individual who prayed after or before an athletic event who was criticized for praying. Complaints were made that it was an endorsement of religion. It was on public property but we must ask ourselves who is the public?. The answer is we are the public.
In the past there has been some criticism of displaying the Ten Commandments on public property and there have been mixed court decisions regarding our right to display these commandments. One point to make is that some if not all of these can be found in laws that have been passed by federal and state governments and if they were simply displayed as such there would be no issue. It is when they are tied to the Ten Commandments which are not about any particular religion and the display on public property is not an endorsement of any religion. Here again who is the public and the answer again is us.
Decisions have been made by some school administration officials is also a problem with regards to rights we as individuals have. Decisions are made by school administrators and principals all the time but do they pass the ethics test or do the decisions amount to political correctness. It is time decisions made by these individuals stop worrying about hurting other individuals feelings and start making the right decisions and honoring students and in some cases parent’s rights with regard to what is being taught and by whom. Opinion should never enter a classroom unless there is the availability of open discussion within reason. We have many freedoms identified in the Constitution and no administrator or principal of any school should make decisions which violate these freedoms including freedom to express our religious beliefs and freedom of speech among others which can be impacted by these decisions.
