History Lessons

We as a country are starting to ask the question of what individual actions warrant a community erecting a statue to an individual, or warrants putting a person's name on something, like a street, park, building or lake.   It's a good thing to ask because there's are a lot of people being honored in this country who frankly shouldn't be.  This has created a conflict the political Right is trying to take advantage of by implying what protestors are really doing is somehow erasing history.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  We don't learn history that way.

Take for example George Todd Park in south Minneapolis.  Actually most people are referring to it as George Floyd Park today.  Someone placed the name 'Floyd' over the name 'Todd' on the park signs, a way to show tribute to the man Minneapolis police murdered a few weeks ago in South Minneapolis. I have a feeling the name will stick.

But it does bring up the question of who is George Todd? Outside of a handful of people, probably less than 1% of the population, most of us (including myself) had no idea who George Todd was.  FYI - He was the Minneapolis Park Commissioner from 1957 to 1963, and actually had the park named after him while he was still alive, a rare honor as he was dying from cancer at the time. It seems like he was a decent guy, so if we do change the name of the park, we should find something else in the city to name after him.  

For over 50 years, George Todd Park existed and apparently very few people learned exactly who George Todd was.  Why?  Because we don't learn about historical people and events by visiting statues, or reading a place's name.  We learn about them in schools, by reading books, or by visiting museums.  Maybe there was a plaque in the park explain who Todd was, but most people never went to the park, and the ones who did had to find said plaque, and then read it.  That's a stupid way to try to preserve history, but it was never about that.  It was about honoring Todd, and now (possibly) Floyd.

When people realized John C. Calhoun, one of the most racist pro slavery bastards to ever live, probably shouldn't have a major lake in Minneapolis named after him, his defenders started looking up his record, saw 'government official' on his Wikipedia page, and never read any further, to his unfathomable racism.  They falsely place historical importance on the man without ever understanding what Calhoun really represented.  To those who insist naming something after an individual creates an instant knowledge level within the community, most Twin Cities people, after 176 years, had no idea who Calhoun was when the decision was made to change the lake name.  'History lessons' was a pathetic excuse by people who either liked the pro-Slavery Calhoun, or disliked the FAR MORE HISTORIC replacement name, the Native American Bde maka Ska.  Most people when being told who exactly Calhoun was, agreed the name needed to be changed; Minnesota should not be 'honoring' a man like Calhoun.

If a person really thinks statues and place names are important to remembering history, shouldn't they be demanding statues and place names be created to honor ALL history.  If this is how you think history is taught, you should be for honoring every historical figure, from Socrates, to Shakespeare, to Rutherford B. Hayes, to Pee Wee Herman.  Of course they aren't suggesting that, because they're only for certain history being presented to the masses; what they perceive as 'their' history.

A Reagan era judge, Laurance Silberman, recently made comments about how outraged he was with the idea of renaming the US Military bases which (for some odd reason) have Confederate officer names on them.  He was very much against the renaming, comparing it on par with the desecration of Confedreate graves. It was at this point one of the few African American Law clerks in Silberman's Circuit chimed in.  Of the many good things he argued, he reminded Silberman of his own advocacy for removing J. Edgar Hoover's name from the FBI Building when Hoover's true history was revealed after his death.  

For Republicans it's not about ALL history, only certain history being remembered.  If you have a Conservative friend who insists we have to preserve racists monuments and place names so we remember history, then ask them to sign a petition to rename their kid's school after Barack Obama.  Point out you're only trying to preserve history.  My guess is the next words out of their mouth will be "but that's not MY history.  That's YOUR history!" Wrong again.  All history, both good (Obama) and bad (Confederates), is all of our history.  They can't cherry pick it like a Las Vegas buffet.

Which brings up my final point.  Republicans scream how removing Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, or Columbus tributes is erasing history.  Actually, the complete opposite is true.  People don't want these statues to come down because they don't know anything about the honoree.  It's because we DO know who these people are, and their complete history, we want them removed.

When white people put up Columbus, make no mistake; there indeed was a racist element in their agenda, a reminder white people dominated the minorities.  They try to disguise their motivations with either a background story which eliminates most of the historical record, or they outright lie to make the individual seem worthy.  They'll say 'Columbus proved the world wasn't flat (that's a lie), was a brilliant leader (violent despot is more accurate), who opened up the world for everyone (his personal death count for Natives of the Caribbean, as well as Central and North America is in the 3 to 5 million range, his actions lead to the beginning of the slave trade, and he stole Native girls aged 9 and 10, pushing them into the sex trade).  WE NOW KNOW HIS REAL HISTORY AND IT'S TIME FOR ALL DAMN COLUMBUS STATUES TO COME DOWN!!! (https://theoatmeal.com/comics/columbus_day?fbclid=IwAR2cADnyPP4-9sLbvzboy6VHvz9ls5JcoPetY63TBQoFcOZ06JPvlnvQJ5s)

Confederate statues and place names are just as evil.  They were erected not in the days after the Civil War, but mainly from about 1905 to 1930, specifically as a reminder that even though the South lost the Civil War, white domination over the African Americans still existed, even in states who fought against the Confederacy.  These statues and place names were made to intimidate and threaten.  

The Confederacy were traitorous bastards, an insurgency against the United States.  They rebelled because they wanted to keep slavery legal, something the Confederate leaders of the time often confirmed, something many of the states mentioned as the reason they seceded from the union.  The only 'State's Rights' they were fighting for was keeping slaves, and they sure railed against 'State's Rights' as they demanded the Federal Government undo northern state laws which prevented slavery from being legal in the north. These terrorists killed hundreds of thousands of US soldiers and civilians.  THEY SHOULD NOT BE HONORED!!!

Ripping down these statues and renaming streets, lakes, parks and buildings is not about erasing history.  It's about 1) demanding we as a society do not honor those unworthy of such an honor, and 2) holding these people accountable for their TRUE historical record.

I'm amazed at how many Rightos are furious their sacred white power honorees are finally being dragged down.  Considering the thousands of people we could honor in Minnesota who aren't genocidal maniacs or traitors to their country, their continued resistance to doing the right thing shows how small minded bitterness controls them.