Just a thought that popped in my head today during class...
Throughout your formal learning experience, did you ever have a teacher that attempted to not have an American bias?
I may have touched on it before in conversation when I was enrolled in an American History class in Spring '07. That teacher, and my Philosophy of Ethics professor, were the first to actually tell it how it was and is. For example, we've always been told facts about slavery and the horrible conditions these people were put in. But there was always this background of "American Greatness" through it all... like it wasn't that bad.
In my Philosophy class we mostly discussed the treatment of Native Americans and how reparations are in order. People were claiming land that did not belong to them. Yet our textbooks from elementary school on glorify this period of escaping the oppressive hands of Europe. The process of escaping that oppression hurt, killed, and still affects the Native American community today. Why isn't that emphasized in our textbooks? When learning about history, teachers have always said something similar to, "We learn about the past to prevent future mistakes." If that is the case, I would like to learn the truth as we know it to make my community more humane. America may look like a big bully, but it's what we have to learn from.
Thoughts..?
