SAN DIEGO — The Fourth of July is my friend Ben Dishman‘s birthday, just as it was the birthday of my late father, Martin B. Harrison. When both of them were pre-schoolers, their parents fibbed to them that the fireworks and celebrations all were in honor of their birthdays. Of course, they both believed the story, as it had come from what for them was the source of all knowledge — their parents. It wasn’t until they were old enough to go to school that they were disabused of the notion by their classmates.
How sweet it would be if history were the way our doting, protective, loving parents told it to us as they tucked us into bed. How comforting the thought of a world of people out there who, even though they don’t know you, love you.
Almost from the beginning, American history, as told to children, has been made nice and sanitized by loving historians who wished to impart strong moral values, even if they conflicted with the literal truth. The best known example was Parson Mason Locke Weems, who wrote a biography of George Washington not long after our first President’s death. Weems told the story of young George chopping down one of his father’s favorite cherry trees. When the bewildered father asked who could have done such a thing, George reportedly answered, “I cannot tell a lie, father; it was I.”
It was a wonderful story, teaching us children that we should always tell the truth no matter what the consequences. And if we told the truth, chances are we would be forgiven our misdeeds. We learned that being naughty is bad enough, but lying is far worse. Such a strong, important moral lesson. The problem with it was that Parson Weems made the story up. George Washington never chopped down his father’s cherry tree. He never had to manfully confess to his father. To put it more bluntly, Weems lied to teach children not to lie. What hypocrisy!
I remember as a boy reading a series of biographies about American heroes — Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Davy Crockett — not a blemish on any of them! They were all upstanding exemplars of morality, people who I would do well to emulate. Of course, later on when I got to UCLA as a combination history and political science major, I learned that every one of these heroes–and others as well–had their seamier sides. They were, after all, imperfect humans, just like the rest of us.
On Friday night, after Shabbos dinner, I watched a film of the Broadway production of Hamilton, which is now streaming on the Disney Channel. With playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda, a Puerto Rican, starring in the title role and such African-American performers as Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr; Renee Elise Goldsberry as Angelica Schuyler; Christopher Jackson as George Washington; and Daveed Diggs (who also is Jewish) in the dual roles of Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson all relating in rap the story of the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, it was clear that somewhere along the line, history would make way for rhyme.
With a cast of mostly Black performers portraying the nation’s White Founding Fathers, one issue that needed to somehow be dealt with was that of Black slavery. Hamilton was portrayed as being an abolitionist, as was made clear in a rap-off with Jefferson, in which the future 3rd President proclaimed that the South was a producer, while the North simply manipulated trade. Hamilton snarled back that if the South produced, it was because of the unpaid labor of slaves. Historians might tell you that Hamilton’s record was not so crystal clear. He married Eliza Schuyler, whose family though Northern, owned slaves. In the Caribbean, from whence he came, Hamilton may have worked on a slave ship.
So history, as told to us as children and as presented in this Hamilton “re-boot,” often is not so much a question of facts as it is a question of values and culture that the story-teller feels necessary to impart. So it is too with the monuments that have been erected in every city to explorers, town mothers and fathers, famous politicians, and local heroes. We often put people up on pedestals without looking too carefully into their lives. The San Diego Union-Tribune recently ran a page of opinion from a variety of community members about the battle that’s now raging over which of these statues and monuments should be removed from public view. One writer asked perceptively who among any of us is without faults. If only perfect people can be permitted as models for statues, there’d be few places in our country for pigeons to roost. On Friday, President Donald Trump further politicized the issue with a speech below the large granite heads of Washington, Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt at Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. He charged that people who want to take down statues are intent on destroying America’s heritage and crushing the country’s self-esteem.
I’m of a different opinion than the President — no surprise there. I believe that it’s a good thing for our country to seriously reexamine the myths and legends that have been passed off as history. I think it would be a good idea for every political jurisdiction that has ever erected a statue, or named a street, or a school after a famous person, to reexamine that person’s biography and to determine whether that person — or perhaps someone else — is more worthy of the honor. I believe we all would learn more in the process, not only about the subjects of our inquiries but also about what values we personally hold dear.
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Donald H. Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com
Don,
Most enjoyable read. The message is clear and one with which I agree. Thanks for your insight. Be well and stay safe,