The Importance of Getting History Right

   History has always been a sensitive topic, especially to us, the Jewish people. On the one hand, our history is filled with the complexities and tales of how a nation so small could endure past any other civilization. We are instructed to thrive off of our history. However, on the other hand, we are confronted with the slanderous and libelous episodes of our Jewish history in which nations spread lies and attempted to destroy the Jewish people. Therefore, getting history right is a very personal topic for me and relates extremely well. History is something universal, something that unites the world, and a misrepresentation of history leads to disastrous consequences. The recording of history is fundamentally biased, but it is pertinent to ensure that it is as accurate as possible in order to provide for the past, present, and future. History has extraordinary power to shift perceptions, and it must be used as a tool, not as something detrimental.
    One of the most blatant misrepresentations of history is during the time of the Holocaust. Hitler built his regime with one lie after another about the Jews, citing stereotypes and fabricating stories to reverse perceptions Germans had of the Jews, turning their relationship into one of animosity. The Germans submitted to what was occurring, and from there the Holocaust began and wrecked its destruction. Once history is recorded, it becomes fact, whether it is true or not. Therefore, the Germans believed they were reacting to facts. Little did they know or care to know that what Hitler was saying was completely and utterly false.
     Even earlier than the Holocaust was the Dreyfus Affair, in which Alfred Dreyfus, a respected and honored general in the French army, was accused of espionage. After publicly degrading him and sending him off to exile, one prominent writer, Emile Zola, wrote a fiery letter to the President of the Republic, entitled, “J’Accuse,” in which he quite literally accused several court martials for forging evidence and convicting an innocent man. History was changed once again.
       In today’s day and age, social media has taken the platform for recording history. However, especially in the realm of Israel, history is skewed. Israel is seen as the “oppressor state” who took away the land from the Palestinians in 1948 and continues to do so. Headlines scream of different “attacks” that Israel commits against Palestinians, and the cruelties the Palestinians suffer under Israel’s “rule.” This isn’t fact at all, but people believe it, and it becomes even more dangerous.
       People believe what they are told. We see it manifested everywhere. Society is constructed by history, perspectives are molded by it. Therefore, it is extremely important to get history right. People need to know the facts, even if it is shameful. History happened and we cannot change the events, so we should not change the recording of it. If we don’t know our true history then aren’t we doomed to repeat it?