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| http://www.ushistory.org/us/51e.asp |
From a young age, Americans spend the majority of their days cramming as much information into their heads as possible. We worry about studying for our next test and argue little with the information that is provided by text books. However, these textbooks often only show part of the story, whether intentionally or not. One of the most relevant examples of this is injustices done by our country. When our country commits an act that is harmful to others, we usually try to not talk about it and sweep it under the rug. We hear little about the Japanese internment camps that were around during World War II, mostly because we don’t want to remember that dark part of our history. However, this non-mainstream history is both important to our past as a country and interesting.
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| http://www.ushistory.org/us/51e.asp |
Shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, many Americans began to get nervous that there were Japanese spies among them. Soon, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066. This proclamation began the process that led to the internment of the majority of Japanese Americans on the west coast of the United States. The government positioned the placement of Japanese Americans in these camps as a matter of national security, but in reality most of the people in these camps were loyal, patriotic Americans (Teitelman). Most textbooks would describe this matter simply as a measure taken to protect Americans, but the Japanese Americans’ side of the story is largely ignored, showing the bias that is often apparent in America toward the “white American view.” Years later, similar treatment was given to Muslim Americans after 9/11. We were so terrified of somebody in our country helping terrorist organizations that we regularly violated their rights as Americans to give ourselves peace of mind. Racial profiling was and still is fairly common, and many honest Americans are judged negatively just for being Muslims.
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| http://socialistorganizer.org/racial-profiling-left-out-of-united-states-v-arizona-2/ |
Hidden histories are a very important part of the past and should be studied much more intensively by Americans. I think that our focus on the positive sides of our history and the negative sides of many other cultures’ histories leads many young Americans to be ethnocentric, which is not a good trait to have as globalization increases at an alarming rate. Hidden histories show the other side of the story and I think that we owe it to ourselves to explore the entirely of a subject, not just one biased side. We need to look at the atrocities that we have committed as a country to be able to make sure that we never repeat our mistakes. As any history buff will tell you “Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it”.
Martin, J. N., & Nakayama, T. K. (2013). Intercultural communication in context. (6th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Teitelman, R. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ushistory.org/us/51e.asp
Jacob,
ReplyDeleteDo you think that the treatment of the Muslim's is on the same level as the Japanese? I chose this same subject and I believe that although the Muslim's aren't literally being imprisoned, they are looked upon as prisoners. Good job comparing the 2 cultures and recognizing that these hidden histories are important so we can change the way we view cultures other than our own
Hi Jacob!
ReplyDeleteI liked your statement on how America tries to sweep the dark part of its history under the rug and tries to forget about it and move on. I think this is true for most countries, and I believe that it is actually extremely important that a country realizes the atrocities and sins it may have committed in the past to better move forward as a nation. I think if nations would recognize their past sins and show sincere and heartfelt repentance over it, it would greatly help in reconciliation and renewed understanding between the opposing groups.