Essay by ruru57 April 2004

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"History despite it's wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, and if faced with courage, need not be lived again." (LMTTM 137.) If students are educated with our past, then they'll learn from the mistakes that were made. A great deal of my eighth grade year was spent on the Holocaust. Not only was it taught in history class, but also in my English and class. I even had the pleasure of meeting two survivors from Auschwitz, a Nazi concentration camp. The teachers made it clear to us that the reason so much time was spent on the Holocaust was to prevent it from happening to our generation. They believed that if they showed us how wrong it was, we'd keep it from happening to us. This is why the truths of history should always be taught in American schools. If children never learn about the horrors that make up a great deal of America's history, then they are in danger of repeating those same horrors.

Another thing bad about lying to students regarding America's history, is the hypocrisy of it all. "On one hand, they describe a country without repression, without real conflict. On the other hand, they obviously believe that we need to lie to students to instill in them love of country. But if the country is so wonderful, why must we lie?" (Loewen 296.) Just the fact that the teachers and textbooks are lying at all shows how truly corrupt America can be. How can adults be worried about losing authoritative power when the authority is having a negative influence on America's future leaders? As far as values go, what kinds of values include educating America's youth with lies?

When it comes to worrying about losing adult-held values and authority, adults are selfishly thinking about the wrong...