Sociologist contends a distorted view of history is being taught

Observer Staff

11/5/2003 12:00:00 AM

The "Culture and Curriculum" conference featured author and sociologist Dr. James Loewen whose book exposed misinformation with the history lessons being taught in classrooms across the country.

After spending two years at the Smithsonian Institution surveying 12 leading high school textbooks of American history, Dr. Loewen concluded in his book- "Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your High School History Textbook Got Wrong"-that many of the stories contain mis-information "so inaccurate as to be slanderous."

"We teach a very distorted view of history," he explained. As an example, he offered the commonly believed anecdote of the Manhattan purchase.

"This story contains the seeds of much that goes wrong in history that is being taught to our children," he said. "A statue in Manhattan shows a Dutchman buying the island for $24 worth of beads in 1626.

"The truth is nothing so sweet. The Dutch gave perhaps $2,400 worth of trade goods�metal kettles, steel axes and knives, guns, and woven wool blankets�to the Canarsies, who lived in Brooklyn and had no claim to Manhattan. The Weckquaesgeeks, who did live on Manhattan, were not amused.

"Then in the 1640s, with help from the Canarsies, the Dutch exterminated most of the Weck-quaesgeeks. Ever since, the $24 myth has made Indians look silly, because telling what really happened might make the Dutch look immoral."

Dr. Loewen, who taught race relations for 20 years at the University of Vermont, said he believes the myth lives on for two reasons.

"One, it makes the Indians look stupid, bolstering white supremacy in education; and two, it legitimizes the acquisition. �We didn't steal it, we bought it.'"

He also decried the misuse of terminology in children's history texts.

"The word �discover' in these books means �the first white person to see it,'" he stated. "Simply changing �discovered' to �visited' would do much to correct the idea that Columbus was the first to see America when it was already inhabited by Native Americans.

"One result of these false teachings is that African American, Native American and Latino students view history with a special dislike. They also learn it especially poorly. Students of color don't know they're being alienated, only that they �don't like social studies' or �aren't any good at history.' In college, most students of color give history departments a wide berth.

"We have got to do better," he said. "What we need to do is from this day forward, teach anti-racism. This isn't about being politically correct; it's simply about being correct."