Michele L. Norris has written an excellent essay, “Germany has faced its horrible past. Can we do the same?” which appeared in the Washington Post on June 3rd. Here’s the link:

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/06/03/slavery-us-germany-holocaust-reckoning/

 

In it, she outlines the process that Germany has gone through –and continues to go through– to face up to the horrors it perpetrated as a country in WWII. Which approaches have worked well, which approaches haven’t worked so well.

 

And then she asks an extremely timely and important question: can the USA do the same?

 

Can we face up to our history, which includes genocide and forced relocation of native populations, as well as 246 years of lawful and institutionalized slavery, followed by decades and decades of overt ‘Jim Crow’ oppression (which is staging a comeback with voter “restrictions” and police brutality)?

 

Can we accept responsibility for the bad as well as the good in our history? Can begin to move forward without blinders on? Or will we continue to try to sweep our sins under the carpet until denial, projection and blame tear us apart?

 

This is the very conversation we need to have.

 

Amnesia is not atonement.