“I see the rhetorical question "Who Owns the Past?" so frequently used by humanities and social science professors to provoke classroom discussions as needlessly and erroneously planting the idea that a living group of people could "own the past." Surely, any such claim should be taken no more seriously than the cast of Sesame Street should they claim to "own the alphabet.” PastHistoryAcademiaSesame Street Book:Stones of Contention Source: Stones of Contention
“The prevailing vision of history, as an egalitarian pageant of equally valid, self-authenticating "perspectives" on the past representing the "voices" of particular groups, is dangerous to society at large. It reserves a special place for everyone, which is exciting news for political extremists, con-artists, and megalomaniacs eager to register their self-interested propaganda as legitimate contributions to a "broader perspective" of history.” HistoryIdentity PoliticsPolitical ExtremismPropoganda Book:Stones of Contention Source: Stones of Contention