By JOHN RICHARD SCHROCK
In World War II in the Pacific, the Japanese invaded British Hong Kong, Dutch Indonesia, French Indo-China, the American Philippines, and other regions using their “Asia for Asians” argument against colonialism. Of course, they were becoming a major colonial power themselves.
U.S. General “Vinegar Joe” Stilwell realized local guerilla troops in these countries would join us and fight if they believed that when we defeated Japan, their country would be free. But Churchill proclaimed he had not become prime minister to give away their colonies. This became a rift between Britain’s Lord Montbatten and Stilwell. Stilwell’s aide John Paton Davies, Jr. kept our American war propaganda effort in the Pacific non-colonial. A weak F.D.R. caved. Stilwell’s argument lost. When we won the war with Japan, the guerillas had to keep on fighting to expel the Dutch from Indonesia. In 1954, the French were expelled from their garrison at Dien Bien Phu in what is now North Vietnam. But it would take longer to free South Vietnam held by the rich and powerful who ruled southern Indo-China.
If this history had been in our history books, would America have entered the Vietnam War? This failure to get history recorded right cost over 58,000 American and 3.1 million Vietnamese lives.
Unfortunately, history books worldwide leave out factual material that in turn allows populations to misunderstand their history and march onward into future conflict. Today, Japan’s history books lack any mention of the terrible atrocities committed during World War II at Nanjing or by their biowarfare facility 731 that spread bubonic plague and typhus across Chinese towns. “In wartime, you have to do anything to win,” is the excuse given by those who know these war crimes occurred. But a civilian population that does not know its history can repeat its mistakes.
The Tulsa race massacre of May 31–June 1, 1921, is not in our history books either. But it should be. It was one of the most devastating incidents of racial violence in American history, killing 39 and leaving nearly 10,000 homeless.
But now we are seeing across America a movement to gag teachers, censor books, and even command or cull what is taught in college classes. If this effort continues, it will surpass the hateful McCarthy witch hunts of the early 1950s. The U.S., long a critic of other nations that limit speech and censor publications, is rapidly approaching becoming the leader in enforcement of its own nationalistic dogma: —Say only good things about the U.S.! —No criticism allowed!
Targets include K–12 teachers, university professors, and librarians at every level. The independent research firm SurveyUSA found that 37 percent of teachers surveyed were more likely to leave teaching at the end of this school year if laws that “prevent honest teaching and conversations” reach their classrooms. And 92 percent asserted that students “should be able to learn about historical truths, even when they are uncomfortable.”
Much of this drive targets critical race theory (CRT) which is a topic discussed in a few advanced college courses on school law. But it is perceived as challenging any American history in the classroom that points to anything negative. According to Education Week, in this past year, 13 states have restricted teaching critical race theory or discussing race and gender in class. The newly elected Virginia governor signed an executive order preventing teaching of “inherently divisive concepts.” Some governors and legislatures are ordering universities to submit class syllabi in their effort to write educational gag laws.
A recent survey by researchers at UCLA and UCSD found 894 school districts (35 percent or 17.7 million of all K–12 students) had seen local anti-CRT campaigns. Motivation included partisan politics as well as specific concerns about indoctrination.
The shared language used in these efforts points to its widespread use by political networks.
Librarians also feel the pressure. An EdWeek Research Center survey in the second half of December found 16 percent of school and district leaders reported requests to ban books since 2019. These book bans focused on race, gender, and sexuality.
Teaching is a profession. And professions have bodies of professional knowledge and practice. A geology teacher has a responsibility to teach that the world is spherical and not flat, and our future in space exploration depends on that. To command what and how we will teach is no more acceptable than a patient telling a surgeon how to conduct surgery. Interfere with our professional teaching, and we will leave.
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John Richard Schrock has trained biology teachers for more than 30 years in Kansas. He also has lectured at 27 universities in 20 trips to China. He holds the distinction of “Faculty Emeritus” at Emporia State University.