It's Time To Move Forward With Our Local History

History is a teacher, not an instigator. It is a part of each and every one of us whether or not we like it. There's not a person on earth that's not been affected by history. It's the "jumping off" point for improvement. Some of it we would rather not remember. That doesn't make it go away. We are finding out just how twisted much of our history has evolved because of censorship of the real truth. The texts I had to use were subjective in many instances, rather than factual. Truth is often ugly, shameful, but always interesting, and very relevant. Over the centuries historic writers have put their own spin on history. One of the best examples of "history gone wild" is the Bible. There will always be people that cling to ideology rather than what actually took place. Historical reference, if it's the truth, is never shameful. It doesn't need to be candy-coated, or swept away like forgotten trash. It teaches us by reference not to repeat what we always seem to repeat. Slavery exists all over the world. A high school named after a slave owner is a reminder of what our society used to be like. Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, James Madison, Lewis Clark, James Monroe etc.etc.etc. were all slave owners in our agrarian society. Are we supposed to rename all of our institutions with those names? Take slave owner pictures off all our money? Begin a 21st century ban of all books with degrading commentary? Get over it! Don't be a part of hiding what really happened in America because it's offensive. We seem to always be searching for a reason to hate each other. If it's not religious differences, then it's class distinctions, or caste systems. We are all Americans regardless of what came before. Our job now is to figure out what the future needs to look like in order for us to survive. I am far more concerned over global warming, stopping the use of fossil fuels, curing cancer, and improving our food chain than a high school named after a man that during his time was an esteemed role model. It's old news, and a reminder of how cruel people can be. The KKK is very much alive globally. That doesn't make me an endorsee of the KKK. It makes me conscious that evil resides all around me. In a hundred years we will be questioning why we named ten of our greatest financial institutions after thieves. Or why we didn't incarcerate a Congress that refused to legislate.