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davidschroth"Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it".
The American mythos argues that the past is irrelevant. We claim to be a country of immigrants that left the dead past behind, making our way to the land of opportunity, where any man can be a success if only he works hard enough. And our civic life, in its haste to tear down and demolish the relics of the past, replacing with the latest fashion, reflects that belief. And there is some truth to that belief - our willingness to embrace the new is a source of strength.
In the California high desert, the unceasing wind no doubt helped the sand and sagebrush to reclaim the site where 10000 citizens were once interned. But their work was undoubtedly made easier by the haste with which the American government demolished the camp and attempted to eliminate the evidence of the betrayal of our ideals.
Sixty years after the establishment of Manzanar, the few remaining internees and their descendants convened at Manzanar, and remembered. And part of that remembering was listening to a speech by a representative of today's Issei and Nisei. He spoke of the 1200 souls arrested, and held without due process.
We do not remember our mistakes - we repeat them.
The American mythos argues that the past is irrelevant. We claim to be a country of immigrants that left the dead past behind, making our way to the land of opportunity, where any man can be a success if only he works hard enough. And our civic life, in its haste to tear down and demolish the relics of the past, replacing with the latest fashion, reflects that belief. And there is some truth to that belief - our willingness to embrace the new is a source of strength.
In the California high desert, the unceasing wind no doubt helped the sand and sagebrush to reclaim the site where 10000 citizens were once interned. But their work was undoubtedly made easier by the haste with which the American government demolished the camp and attempted to eliminate the evidence of the betrayal of our ideals.
Sixty years after the establishment of Manzanar, the few remaining internees and their descendants convened at Manzanar, and remembered. And part of that remembering was listening to a speech by a representative of today's Issei and Nisei. He spoke of the 1200 souls arrested, and held without due process.
We do not remember our mistakes - we repeat them.
