The Fax about History

Abstract

Social studies and history have taken a back seat to other subjects in recent years, but Mr. Bryant argues that there is far too much at stake to allow these important fields to become irrelevant. To drive home the point, he shares a story that made headlines in 2004. THE POWERFUL lawyer in the immaculate, pinstriped suit could not do it. Former senators, influential and comfortable within the halls of power, could not do it. A former high-ranking official of the United States Justice Department could not do it. It took the tools and the skills of a historian to make it happen -- to hold accountable the executive branch of the federal government in front of the entire nation. For weeks the independent commission investigating the horrific 9/11 terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C., had been asking that National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice testify before the commission, in public and under oath. The Administration of President George W. Bush had steadfastly denied the request on the grounds that if Rice were to be compelled to testify under such conditions, it would set a dangerous precedent that could damage the ability of future Presidents to get unvarnished advice from their advisors. defense seemed to be working, until the fax arrived. Newsweek's Michael Isikoff described it like this: The grainy photograph rolled off the fax machine at the White House counsel's office last Monday morning, along with a scribbled note that smacked of blackmail. If the White House didn't allow national security advisor Condoleezza Rice to testify in public, . . . it read, This will be all over Washington in 24 hours.1 The photograph was of Admiral William D. Leahy, who had been chief of staff to Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S Truman. It had been taken on 22 November 1945, as Leahy testified before a congressional panel investigating the attack on Pearl Harbor, and had run on the front page of the New York Times. The Administration's claims of establishing a potentially dangerous precedent fell apart at once. Condoleezza Rice was sent before the commission, and she did, indeed, testify. Finding the photograph was the work of a historian from the University of Virginia named Philip Zelikow. The executive director of the 9/11 Commission, Zelikow had spent months poring over records of the Pearl Harbor inquiries.2 Speaking of the successful efforts to secure Rice's testimony, Thomas Kean, who chaired the commission, said, This is what happens when you hire historians.3 That is exactly the point. is a story every social studies teacher in America should commit to memory, for it offers evidence of the immense power and practicality of studying history. The social studies are under attack these days, having become the redheaded stepchild of our school's curriculum. Teachers often tell me that they teach social studies when time permits, in between the more serious pursuits of math, science, and, more recently, literacy. With the ascendance of each new curricular focus, the social studies receive less and less attention. Several elementary school teachers have admitted to me that social studies is taught in their classrooms only around certain holidays, such as Thanksgiving and Martin Luther King Day. The implication -- one that is certainly not lost on students -- is that the social studies are not important. The danger is that these same students will grow up ignorant of their heritage, their rights, and their responsibilities. In a democracy, we cannot tolerate a populace that is ignorant of such weighty matters. The need for social studies should be apparent to anyone who even briefly considers the power the American people wield when they enter an election booth. We, the people, select the men and women who chart the economic courses that will affect the lives and prosperity of our grandchildren. Through our vote, we place within the grasp of an individual the power to destroy the planet many times over. …