Historians on the Confederate Monument Debate
U nastavku upućujemo na brojne reakcije američkih povjesničara i izjavu American Historical Association povodom javne rasprave o konfederacijskim spomenicima.
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American Historical Association (AHA)
Historians on the Confederate Monument Debate
“History is what the present chooses to remember about the past.” ~ Carl Becker (AHA President, 1931)
In the wake of the Charlottesville tragedy, historians across the country provided important historical context and insight to the public. The AHA compiled statements that our members, fellow historical societies, AHA Council members, and staff have made in op-eds, interviews, and other media conversations about the importance of historical thinking and knowledge within the current debate. The AHA’s statement on how these issues relate to the discipline of history will be forthcoming.
AHA Statement on Confederate Monuments
AHA Resources
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National Council on Public History
Monumental moments
While dozens of historians stepped forward to contextualize the timing and intent of these memorials and endorse their removal, in the weeks that followed many Americans agreed with President Donald J. Trump that it was “Sad to see the history and culture of our great country being ripped apart with the removal of our beautiful statues and monuments . . . you can’t change history, but you can learn from it.”
Seizing the final clause in the president’s message as our license, we at The Public Historian take this opportunity to share a dozen essays from the journal’s backlist, ranging across some twenty years, that illustrate the evolving historiography on the issue of monuments, memory, history, and heritage and broaden the discussion beyond the focus of the Civil War, Redemption, and resistance to the expansion of civil rights during the 1960s and 1970s.