Anita: I as you know work in a museum and have met and talked with many people from California over the years. The older people know something about the origins of July 4th and the American Revolutionary War (which was biracial in many ways and global also). Younger people do not have this knowledge,especially on the west coast because their parents and many of their grandparents were born on the west coast and either have not bothered to talk with them about this because they do not have the knowledge of the events themselves. California post-contact history does not include this possibly because the events took place in the eastern part of the country.
Also many Hollywood presentations about the Revolution have not been done very well at all( exceptions are the "Covenant Chain", "Washington and Washington,The Foraging of a Nation" etc). Hollywood focused on the Civil War extensively and WWII over the last one hundred years because 1. The first motion picture was filmed less than fifty years after the last battle of the Civil War and although it had nothing to do with the war some southern sympathizers worked in the entertainment industry and many "Lowes Theaters" were located in the south. In order to gain favors with the "local powers that be" many Civil War theamed movies were produced from books and plays of the era that were written by Civil War survivors and children of former or deceased soliders and officers-example DW Griffith's grand father was a Condfederate officer and Thomas Dixon was an author of several books and one of them was filmed as "The Birth of A Nation". Mr. Griffith produced the movie.
The Civil War was (and is in a sense)still recent to many people of the time period between 1865 and now. Also WWII was and still is seen as "just yesterday" by many european people who are still living and can recall events as either children or young adults.
2.Also very few movies of the WW II era have been made to showcase what many African-American,Hispanic-American,Asian-American and American-Indian soliders and officers experienced on an international and personal level. Some of these people came home,completed school on the GI Bill and led successful lives(my dad was one of many). And when these stories are told it is no surprise that people are shocked and in a lot of cases delighted that we all fought together to survive and were successful at it. History is not being taught very well because of time constraints,poorly prepared teachers,athletic coaches who have no idea how to approach the subject but who can show someone how to play and to participate in a sport and many other concerns. When this will end I do not know. Jane.
-----Original Message-----
>From: Anita Wills <[log in to unmask]>
>Sent: May 20, 2007 6:21 PM
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: [VA-HIST] WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED?
>
>Joanne,
>You are right about that, we are all caught up in our own interest. What
>scares me is that many people have no idea of basic history. I was talking
>with a group of adults, who did not know why we celebrated the 4th of July.
>If these adults (some of whom are parents), are clueless, where does that
>leave the children?
>
>Hopefully, the Jamestown Committee will have educational materials to for
>studets after the event.
>
>Anita
>
>>From: qvarizona <[log in to unmask]>
>>Reply-To: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history
>> <[log in to unmask]>
>>To: [log in to unmask]
>>Subject: Re: WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED?
>>Date: Sun, 20 May 2007 12:08:27 -0700
>>
>>Anita is right. There wasn't much mention of the Jamestown anniversary in
>>the national media either, but I wonder if it would have made much
>>difference to people who don't read or watch anything outside of their own
>>interest levels. One example of this was the two commentators on TV
>>during a nationally televised golf tourney the weekend prior to "that horse
>>race" in Kentucky. One noted that the English Queen was coming to the USA
>>soon, and the other asked why? During the next break in the golf action,
>>an off-camera commentator spoke up to say he could answer the question
>>regarding the Queen's visit. She was coming, he announced, because of
>>the Kentucky Derby. . . after all, the Queen had always loved horses and
>>owned race horses herself!
>>
>>
>>Joanne
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>Anita Wills <[log in to unmask]> wrote: They should have had more
>>information going to other areas of the country. I
>>am in California, and there was little information coming this way. Had it
>>not been for this list, I would have forgotten this was an anniversary year
>>for Jamestown. They could have had documentaries, programs to pass out to
>>schools, and more information through the internet. This was a missed
>>opportunity for historians to reach out to the millions of students and
>>immigrants who have little knowledge of this part of our history.
>>
>>Anita
>>
>>
>> >From: John Frederick Fausz
>> >Reply-To: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history
>> >
>> >To: [log in to unmask]
>> >Subject: WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED?
>> >Date: Sun, 20 May 2007 02:10:18 EDT
>> >
>> >Hi Everyone:
>> >
>> > With only 49 years and 51 weeks left before another Jamestown
>> >Anniversary is upon us, it might be interesting to survey our Virginia
>> >History interest group members about what they learned about the
>> >first colony that was New, Startling, and/or Hard to Accept, ETC.,
>> >amidst all of the hoopla during the 400th birthday season.
>> >
>> >As a published veteran of the Lewis & Clark Bicentennial, I was struck
>> >by how much anniversary trash obscured the few new "treasures" to
>> >emerge from a renewed "public interest" in those men and their famous
>> >expedition. There were a few new insights, but most of the true experts
>> >were perplexed about the birth of fresh fallacies and the failure to
>>reach
>> >consensus on key issues never before in doubt. PR and the quest for
>> >tourist dollars muddied the waters about "where the expedition began,"
>> >with the Mind of Jefferson at Monticello, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh,
>> >Louisville, Camp Dubois, St. Louis, the Mouth of the Missouri River,
>> >and St. Charles all vying for attention--and thoroughly confusing even
>> >the most dedicated teachers trying to make sense of it all.
>> >
>> >Did the Jamestown Quadricentennial produce similar confusions and
>> >contradictions for anyone? What purported "legacies" are most
>> >historically supportable (leave out the politician-speak) and valid for
>> >Americans in the 21st century?
>> >
>> >Have Fun.
>> >
>> >Best Wishes from St. Louis, where the new Lewis and Clark
>> >statue on the Mississippi waterfront was almost totally engulfed
>> >by the rising river (a sign, perhaps?).
>> >
>> >Fred Fausz
>> >
>> >
>> >**************************************
>> > See what's free at
>> >http://www.aol.com.
>>
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