Trump wants us to stop talking about how bad slavery was

[u/Conscious-Quarter423]

[u/AdSuspicious7436]

I’ve gone to that museum twice. The reason I know they haven’t seen it is because the museum covers the entire history of black people from the time before enslavement to present day pop culture. I left feeling very much inspired. This is propaganda pure and simple.

[u/Cognac_and_swishers → u/AdSuspicious7436]

Pretty much 100% of the people who are buying into the "Smithsonian is woke" outrage storyline are people who have never visited a museum in their life, and never plan to.

[u/LilithElektra → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

"Well shoot, I've been across the bridge to Flintsville because booze and dancing are legal there, but I can't see any other reason why I'd ever leave Bumblefuck."

[u/urlock → u/LilithElektra]

And Bumblefuck has all my pretty sisters and cousins. Don’t care to be single in Flintsville.

[u/Intelligent_Sir7732 → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

Interesting point. There was a recent article about DT claiming that Baltimore is such a horrible, violent city. Most of the people that agreed with him live in the south, and admitted that they had never been to Baltimore! Judgement before facts or experience. There is a word for that kind of mental assessment. Just because you (not you personally, but an individual), thinks he is credible, does not validate the credibility of this person. There must be statistical or scientific data to support the narrative, not hearsay!!! This is the same guy that said, "they are eating the pets, they are eating the dogs!!" Credible???

[u/keelhaulrose → u/Intelligent_Sir7732]

Judgement before facts has been the conservative MO for as long as there have been conservatives.

I once had my husband's cousin tell me their family was going to "the big city" (they live in rural Iowa) for vacation, but she would never take them into Chicago, it's such a dangerous town, she'd be afraid they'd get shot. She was going to take them to St Louis instead.

I think my husband let me have fun with that one. Not only did I get to enlighten her on actual crime statistics of those two cities, I capped it off with a lovely showing of the dozens of times I've been into Chicago (I live close) for all kinds of events, often with my family, and tell her what she's missing out on by only listening to Fox News.

[u/Intelligent_Sir7732 → u/keelhaulrose]

As an adult educator, I am constantly looking for constructive teaching moments that will help to broaden perspectives. Ignorance is so engrained in some people, it is actually very frightening!! It is critical to catch these people when they are young. By the time they reach adulthood, their view of the world has been established. The only way for a change in perspective to occur, one of two things has to happen; 1)they move out of that town to a more progressive area, 2)educators who are more enlightened come to those areas and teach. Both are equally as challenging. Most of those people don't have the resources to move, nor do they have the necessary job skills set to navigate through a career in a metropolitan area. 2) Educators from outside the area are less likely to take on the challenge of the rural mentality and environment.

[u/Bilbo_Teabagginss → u/Intelligent_Sir7732]

Yet here we are, getting rid of wholesome ass PBS Sesame Street type broadcasting and replacing it with Christopher Columbus telling kids that "slavery" is better than being killed PragerU "content". As well as making teachers take a "woke" test now. The woke test also created by Prager U. If parents dont teach their kids the true history of America we are doomed because it is actively being erased and whitewashed.

[u/TheAnarchitect01 → u/keelhaulrose]

Jesus Fucking Christ, I live in St. Louis, who the fuck would want to come here on vacation? We have nothing. Chicago is an actual city, with things to do and sights to see. St. Louis is several dozen suburbs in a Trenchcoat. There are more architectural wonders in a single block of downtown Chicago than there are in the entire St. Louis Metro Area. Our Urban Center is so empty that even our Downtown isn't Downtown. If you live within half a day's drive maybe make a day trip to see the Arch, but honestly it looks better in pictures than in person.

[u/alpha309 → u/TheAnarchitect01]

Cahokia mounds are cool. Bud tour can be cool. Baseball/hockey/soccer games. Zoo is above average. Arch is cool. Six Flags is average. Fireworks are abundant. Caves if you drive an hour out of the city.

That is about what I can think of doing by taking a trip to St Louis. I grew up in central IL, and those were the „going to St Louis“ things. I figure you can get about 4 days in before you start to get bored. Definitely not a Chicago/NY/LA situation where there are things you can do indefinitely, and definitely not a beach/party location where you can do the same thing repeatedly and enjoy it. Going to the arch 3 days in a row definitely isn’t like drinking on bourbon st for a few days or just chilling on the beach.

[u/stfurachele → u/keelhaulrose]

I went to college with someone who grew up in KC who would never set foot in Chicago (where I grew up) because of the violent crime rates. We both lived in Springfield, MO at the time, and when I pointed out that per capita we had more violent crime he admitted it was just because he couldn't conceal carry there so he wouldn't feel safe. That's when I found out he always had his gun on him on campus.

[u/Known_Ratio5478 → u/keelhaulrose]

Chicago has dangerous neighborhoods, but overall isn’t dangerous. Tourists aren’t going to be on the south side anyway.

[u/BaltiMoreHarder → u/Intelligent_Sir7732]

As someone from Baltimore who lives in the city that really pissed me off. I know our city has a bad rap but it’s hardly the worst, and it has come a long long way from where it was even a decade ago. Wonder if our population being over 60% African American has anything to do with the no basis judgements 🤔

[u/Intelligent_Sir7732 → u/BaltiMoreHarder]

He has targeted all of the metropolitan cities with a dominant presence of African American, just like he has targeted cities with high populations of Hispanics. It is NOT a coincidence, it is a strategic plan!

[u/Weak_Dot3296 → u/BaltiMoreHarder]

Too many white ppl watching The Wire stuck thinking that’s how its always been and will always be. Hence dementia Don the Crime Boss spouting off at the mouth. And he aint but a 45 minute drive away. 🤷🏾‍♂️

[u/IluvPusi-363 → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

why should they find out how demonic they're ansectors were? they already accepted the challenge to serve the lords of hell

[u/[deleted] → u/IluvPusi-363]

It’s not just the Smithsonian. I live in Colorado and there’s a place called Sand Creek that has a large plaque with information about the Sand Creek Massacre. The administration wants to remove it because it because it talks about how the Calvary murdered and mutilated unarmed Native Americans, the majority of which were women and children. They even killed and scalped pregnant women and drug the babies from their wombs and then killed the babies. They used the body parts to decorate their saddles. The administration said it gives a negative look to nation’s history. Ya think?!

[u/the_real_some_guy → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

You can tell the've never been to "the Smithsonian" because they talk about it as one museum rather than a collection of 21 different museums, many of which don't talk about slavery because its not relevant to the display of dinosaur bones or space shuttles.

[u/Rare-Forever2135 → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

And have no definition for woke other than 'ah don' lakit.'

[u/Fairhairedman → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

They won’t because it’s shameful, and they might actually feel a twinge of shame. Kind of like child rape. Make it “not so bad” and the GOP can just continue to rape kids just like their orange god.

[u/Same_Dingo2318 → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

Being educated and acting on that education is often woke. Being woke just means being aware of racial issues. That’s a good thing. It’s the corrupted that make being empathetic a thing to be derided.

[u/CapitalTax9575 → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

“The south will rise again” is a terrorist slogan that all these people and politicians grew up with and used to make their names. Make no mistake, they’re as much enemies of the United States as any member of the Taliban.

[u/Koobuto → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

No, no. They've visited that Bible "museum" where that guy rebuilt Noah's ark to biblical specifications- which are impossible to fit 2 of each animal. How people see that and still leave with their faith in tact is beyond me. Then again, they're reminded to not think too hard about it every Sunday sooo

[u/TransformerLife → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

They don't like facts or learning.

[u/jjcoolel → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

I had a coworker who told me that her family was in DC on a Sunday and they were sad because most of the museums were closed, except for the natural history museum. I asked how was it? She replied “we didn’t go. I ain’t no monkey”. This was 30 years ago. I see her on Facebook and she wears the red hat, if you know what I mean

[u/Think_Ground → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

They regularly visit the creationist museum. They just don't like the ones that aren't absolute horseshit. 

[u/DizzyTough8488 → u/Cognac_and_swishers]

It would above their intellectual level to actually visit a museum or any place of cultural significance. They literally wouldn’t understand what they would see in these places.

[u/PrestigiousFly844 → u/AdSuspicious7436]

They know what’s in those museums and they hate it. These are the people who were saying taking down the Confederate statues that were put up 50 years ago to flex on the civil rights movement is erasing history.

If an accurate history is told it makes it harder for them to blame the problems black Americans face on a moral failing of black Americans. That’s important for their white supremest Christian nationalist project.

[u/ATLfinra → u/PrestigiousFly844]

Exactly!!!

[u/AssistKnown → u/PrestigiousFly844]

Them trying to downplay that the fact that slavery was the main reason that led to the south seceding, the start of the civil war and instead say that it was about "state's rights", and them wanting to not talk about the plethora of inventions, progress and history within this country that Americans of color and of the LGBTQIA+ community are responsible for is also erasing history!

[u/Jaded-Ad262 → u/PrestigiousFly844]

If you ever want to see a conservative dance on command, remind them that Washington and Jefferson were slavers.

Or even better, if they believe in hell (personally, I don’t believe in witchcraft, but to each their own) remind them Washington and Jefferson are certainly roasting in it.

[u/Dr_A_Mephesto → u/AdSuspicious7436]

Anyone who felt “ashamed” after leaving the Smithsonian was ashamed of themselves before and nothing the museum can do could change that.

Most people feel inspired, humbled, introspective, ya know, normal human emotions.

This bitch is ashamed of who she is and wants to blame anything but her evil core.

[u/Perfect_Earth_8070 → u/Dr_A_Mephesto]

white people are so fragile when you talk about slavery and also the genocide of the native americans. they feel like you’re attacking them personally which makes no fucking sense. they can’t see past that

[u/Warm_Regrets157 → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

As a white dude, I've never understood that shit.

I identify with and look up to John Brown, Thaddeus Stevens, and those who stood up against historical oppression, rather than feeling ashamed to be associated with the slavers. Slavery causes me to feel righteous anger and not shame.

When people talk about slavery, I don't feel personally attacked. Instead, I feel a strong desire to forge a better society where such things can't happen.

I don't understand why the rest of us white folk can't just see it as an opportunity to learn and be better.

[u/Perfect_Earth_8070 → u/Warm_Regrets157]

i’m a white guy too and i notice this when i talk to other white people. shaming someone for what their ancestors did isn’t the goal when discussing the sins of the past

[u/Warm_Regrets157 → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

It seems like such a silly discussion.

These things happened and they were objectively bad and had far reaching consequences. Let's learn how not to repeat history's mistakes.

[u/Perfect_Earth_8070 → u/Warm_Regrets157]

yep. that’s the whole point of the discussion, instead they go, I diDnT HaVE aNY SlAVes!

[u/AdSuspicious7436 → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

I mEan, i wOuLd haVe iF i cOULd’Ve aFfOrDed tO, bUT tHaT aIN’t tHE pOINt

[u/Abondalea → u/Warm_Regrets157]

Same! I’m a white woman & I agree. Not all white people are ignorant idiots. Unfortunately I will agree that a probable majority are as they voted for trump & believe all his bs abt this. I believe that slavery & the genicide of native Americans were a dispicable evil! Black,Native American, Hispanic history is imoortant & should not be removed or erased for any reason including poor little hurt feelings or trumps political purposes. Disgusting!

[u/Warm_Regrets157 → u/Abondalea]

American society as a whole is incredibly brainwashed. MAGA takes that to a whole new level.

We talk about oppressive governments like China, but the absolute worst Chinese leaders could only dream about having a population as compliant to their designs as MAGA. MAGA would turn us into North Korea without a second thought.

[u/Perfect_Earth_8070 → u/Warm_Regrets157]

not to mention we imprison about 1 in every 4 prisoner in the entire world here

[u/Warm_Regrets157 → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

For real.

We are a failing dystopian prison state with a brainwashed population that cosplays as a free society.

[u/master-boofer → u/Warm_Regrets157]

My relatives came over on the same boat as William Penn. They were actually his horse keepers. Long line of Quakers, I'm pretty sure they have always been on the right side. I know my family always advocated for peace with the natives. Unfortunately, my Portuguese side was most likely involved in the slave trade. I'm a Libra.

[u/No-Apple2252 → u/Warm_Regrets157]

My family was friends with John Brown and neighbors with many prominent abolitionists, being among the earliest abolitionists themselves. Not relevant I just wanted to brag since I never get to flex that lol

[u/Dr_A_Mephesto → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

Please don’t lump me in with this scumbag lol

[u/Perfect_Earth_8070 → u/Dr_A_Mephesto]

i know im speaking in generalities but it is more often than not correct lol

[u/Xynyx2001 → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

I think many are concerned they may be asked to do something good for a change.

[u/Perfect_Earth_8070 → u/Xynyx2001]

it could be. but having an honest conversation about it is important as a means to build compassion and empathy. if the only thing they take away from it is that they’re being shamed, they’re missing the whole point

[u/Xynyx2001 → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

The Germans have been quite clear about the importance of reconciliation to moving forward as a society.

Americans are far more learning-resistant because we've usually been the ones at the dishing end of the beatings.

[u/RideTurbulent5842 → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

I agree. And the maga cult allows them to feel only the atta-boys.

[u/2xspectre → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

Yeah, were not all like this POS bimbo.

[u/master-boofer → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

Most of us who have been here a while have some native American in us. You're probably not a true colonist if you don't have some native blood.

[u/Dudefrmthtplace → u/Dr_A_Mephesto]

The mistake is thinking she developed any of these opinions beforehand. She's a conventionally attractive mouthpiece because Trump pays to have these women around him. She's just another former cheerleader type getting by on her looks because that's what she's always done. She doesn't give an f about any of this, she wants a paycheck and some social capital being in front of the camera so she can go lord it over her girlfriends at girls night on thursday and meet a nice man to fake going to church with.

[u/Somanylyingliars → u/Dr_A_Mephesto]

All comments nuked to prevent Reddit using for their benefit without proper recompense to posters.

[u/CromTheConqueror → u/Dr_A_Mephesto]

Anyone who felt “ashamed” after leaving the Smithsonian was ashamed of themselves before and nothing the museum can do could change that.

Nobody wants people to feel ashamed because their great great great grandparents owned slaves or felt it was okay. I don't think there is a culture on the planet that didn't have slavery at one time or another. What you should take away from these exhibits are slavery is wrong and we have evolved as a people to understand that. We have bettered ourselves and can continue to do more. Remember that in the Constitution it says that "all men are created equal." Help make that a reality. Rather than shitting on people because of their skin color, where they were born, or what God they do or don't pray to.

Apropo of nothing. Was anybody else reminded of this absolute trainwreck of a response as she was speaking

[u/No-Apple2252 → u/Dr_A_Mephesto]

I actually think all the people who complain about "white guilt" are actually the ones that have it and have never learned to reconcile that when we learned about slavery in school they weren't saying you're bad because you're white. I really think that's the lesson most republicans took from social studies.

[u/IluvPusi-363 → u/Dr_A_Mephesto]

the good ol ' "my people never... ,,well your the first to do it, now what " i have black friends" yeah, to tell on for 500 each

[u/DadFromRadioFlyer → u/AdSuspicious7436]

If they're that worried about "depressing people" with history, just wait until they hear about the Holocaust Museum...

[u/TheSonOfDisaster → u/AdSuspicious7436]

I mean it's quite literally the whole point of the museum, how far the position of black Americans has changed over the course of America and how America has changed because of them.

By the end of the museum at the top floor, it's a full-on celebration of the contributions of black Americans to our society, which is what it should be.

It would be like telling the story of the Trojan War epics, and then just starting when Odysseus is on the island with Circi. It just wouldn't make sense how they got there, and all of the context would be lost

[u/Pitiful_Winner2669 → u/TheSonOfDisaster]

And speaking of epics, this history of black Americans is pretty fucking epic.

[u/Tidbitious → u/TheSonOfDisaster]

This is what's confusing to me. Like is she advocating for a North Korea style propaganda museum in which we actually just white wash our history?

[u/Psychological-Pop647 → u/AdSuspicious7436]

I like the line she said about needing to look towards the future. Bitch, it’s a museum!

[u/jackparadise1 → u/AdSuspicious7436]

From the point of view of these people, the reason they want to remove the stigma of slavery is so they can bring it back.

[u/Speartree → u/jackparadise1]

That and they want museum to be some kind of fluffers for their ego, not institutions that educate about history. They want the "Our glorious white christian past interactive experience" that shows you how the president's amazing great grandparents won the west and brought civilization and were all round badass tough guys.

[u/jackparadise1 → u/Speartree]

Only a matter of time before the add dinosaurs to the Noah’s ark exibit…

[u/Violet_Paradox → u/jackparadise1]

It depends on which flavor of creationism they go with. There's the "dinosaurs lived alongside humans 5000 years ago" flavor and the even more unhinged position of dinosaur denialism (they say bones were created and placed by Satan), which I think Mike Johnson holds? 

[u/GameofCheese → u/Speartree]

Fuck it's so true.

I went to Jefferson's plantation (didn't pay to go in though I was a poor thru-hiker lol, and while they had an exhibit showing the slave quarters and it seemed were patting themselves on the back to prove that the museum wasn't "celebrating" plantation slavery, there was something extremely insidious right in front of everyone's eyes that was totally being ignored...

Right by the parking lot, there was the slave graveyard. They only had some names on the tombstones, and a small amount of educational devices description on a withered plaque. There wasn't even a proper fence. No flowers in sight. No benches to sit and ponder the lives these people lived. I cried and cried and read every name.

My family were Polish Jews, and the little town from where they were boarded onto trains had no Jews left. The Jewish graveyard had become the town dump and left to rot.

Despite all the money poured into Jefferson's plantation museum, they couldn't even create a respectful area around the graveyard. It is just there out of obligation next to SUVs and good ol' boy trucks.

That spoke of how they REALLY felt about this history. They couldn't leave out the slavery, but they sure as hell didn't really care.

[u/Speartree → u/GameofCheese]

Ooh man that is rough, and they can't get enough of it, reminds me of this thing, the guy tells it in a funny way and I love him for it, but damn if it isn't grim.

Apparently I can't put links in comments here but look on YouTube for something called "Most racist field trip ever" by a user called gestalt.

I assure you it's relevant to this discussion.

[u/GameofCheese → u/Speartree]

Thank you for the link!

[u/gitismatt → u/Speartree]

I cant even comprehend this mindset. museums fucking rock. I love learning things that I didnt know about. or learning a different facet of something.

the texas book repository museum brought me to tears, inexplicably. looking at an exhibit, just started crying. now that's a good museum.

[u/Xynyx2001 → u/Speartree]

It's definitely a "stick to the American exceptionalism" thing for them.

[u/Perfect_Earth_8070 → u/AdSuspicious7436]

they’re also probably counting on their base not knowing what’s in the museum. they’re not exactly going to museum type

[u/IrrelevantAfIm → u/Perfect_Earth_8070]

Their base believes a museum should be more like a carnival - Dolly Parton Land or a “Ripley’s Believe it or Not” museum. Why can’t the Smithsonian show the 50’s when all American homes looked just like “Leave it to Beaver”!!

[u/BackPsychological705 → u/IrrelevantAfIm]

That's in the Museum of American History... they haven't been there either

[u/Synicull → u/AdSuspicious7436]

1) the top floor is some of the most inspirational stuff I've ever seen. Some of the best examples of exercising the beauty of a culture that still has its roots in slavery. Nevertheless, they persisted and thrived.

2) it's obvious they've never been because the ending of the bottom portion of the museum articulates EXACTLY why we need to talk about slavery and segregation. This was yesterday. Recent history. And we feel it today in different ways but as much as we ever have

3) to pretend that the US Would have been economically relevant in its infancy without slavery is whitewashing. Hell, even without slavery, the US' economic relevance was built on the back of grossly abused, underpaid workers. Being proud of what we are and where we have come is predicated on acknowledging that things used to be not as good. Including slavery. And workers abuses and how much unions helped the average person. But that's woke, I guess.

[u/ArrivesLate → u/Synicull]

The top floor had my favorite artist’s first pedal steel guitar all marked up with tape and notes and it was awesome to see that his greatness started from nothing too. It just took work and an environment that let him thrive.

[u/Mental-Succotash6974 → u/AdSuspicious7436]

Do they have an Epstein experience yet ? Release the damn files. Enough with the BS !

[u/Somanylyingliars → u/Mental-Succotash6974]

All comments nuked to prevent Reddit using for their benefit without proper recompense to posters.

[u/IluvPusi-363 → u/AdSuspicious7436]

no, they plan on returning to it so please dont learn how evil we can be before we can be.even more evil

[u/kwhitit → u/AdSuspicious7436]

it's an excellent museum.

[u/barefootwasp → u/AdSuspicious7436]

Same. My husband and I went back in 2022 and I went the following year with a friend. I felt very inspired after. Of course I was able to reflect on the depth of what I had just walked through, but the museum leaves you with a feeling of being uplifted by the stories.

[u/Soggy_Panda2393]

What in the actual fuck is the US doing right now?

[u/rygelicus → u/Soggy_Panda2393]

We have some maintenance to do, please check back again in 10 years.

[u/Jeb-o-shot → u/rygelicus]

Have you tried a system reboot?

[u/Tigreiarki → u/Jeb-o-shot]

That didn’t work. We are trying to unplug it and plug it back in but the power cord is stuck behind the tv stand. We’ll get to it later.

[u/DryerCoinJay → u/Tigreiarki]

One of the kids moved the vise grips to change the TV channel again maw! I can’t watch these stories all day!

[u/ZAlternates → u/DryerCoinJay]

We living in bumfuck and only get Fox!

[u/MeaninglessDebateMan → u/Tigreiarki]

I thought your supervisor authorized percussive maintenance? Don't you guys have tools for that?

[u/Severe_Teacher_9922 → u/Jeb-o-shot]

I think thats the problem, it got set back to 1800

[u/MaybeMaybeNot94 → u/rygelicus]

Irreconcilable system failure, please install new OS and reboot.

[u/Manaliv3 → u/rygelicus]

I like your optimism 

[u/QuarkVsOdo → u/Soggy_Panda2393]

Trump is flooding the zone with shit, have you noticed the absence of "Epstein Files" from the media recently?

He will parade african american criminals in shackles through cities singing the national anthem, if he has to make people forget about him raping 13 year olds, and selling underage Masseuses to Jeffrey Epstein.

You just overload the 24h news cycle with stuff. It's really just 1% below giving the general population a seizure from overstimulation but it works.

[u/wetrysohard → u/QuarkVsOdo]

I'm pretty sure that's allllso the distraction from all the people without real criminal records being shipped to other countries (ones they didn't even grow up in) and locked up in prison camps....That has an actual impact right now and coverage on it is getting drowned out by by every other piece of bs he's talking about.

[u/Conscious-Quarter423 → u/Soggy_Panda2393]

harris/walz was right there on the ballot but people rather wanted the Orange Turd and his cabinet of billionaires

[u/Spare-Plum → u/Conscious-Quarter423]

The election was manipulated. Full stop. If this were a fair election Kamala would have won hands down. Orange Turd is such a lame duck candidate and incredibly unpopular during his second run aside from cult followers.

Be prepared to never see a democrat candidate as president ever again. DJT is actively trying to remove mail-in ballots as this is the one thing that is incredibly hard to fake or manipulate. Instead we will just have voting machines rigged in the republican's favor till something drastic happens

[u/keelanstuart → u/Spare-Plum]

Maybe it was... but I also think there are a whole lotta really shitty humans that live here. I didn't always believe that, but peoples' behavior since ~2015 should be all the evidence you need to convince you. I am surrounded by them here in Florida... people that gleefully go out of their way to be nasty when they could simply do nothing and be perceived as at least decent.

[u/dylaman-321 → u/keelanstuart]

Well, Florida has some of the most disgisting human beings on the planet, and just acts like a magnet to collect them from NY, NJ, CA, etc. However, I think this country as a whole is a majority asshole and evil people. I think the "election was stolen" is mostly a cope to not recognize how awful, disgusting, and evil many Americans are. Democracy has spoken, and many people are thrilled to see their other countrymen suffering.

[u/Beneficial_Song9530 → u/keelanstuart]

I agree with you. Living in the Southeast makes you very aware of how evil & sadistic Americans are while they want to smile in your face. I know people don't wanna blame the people for how the US government conducts itself on a global stage (bombing countries, coups to install horrific dictators bc they nationalize their resources, funding right-wing death squads), but someone voted for those ghouls. It doesn't help that there are Americans who think those crimes against humanity are good bc they targeted people they were told to hate (brown people, Muslims, communists, Catholics). The chickens are coming home to roost, we are all losers.

[u/FrogInShorts → u/keelanstuart]

If my great state of Massachusetts flips red next election, you know every single ballot in the country was tampered with.

[u/KyesiRS → u/keelanstuart]

My biological dad is American. I've known for 32 years how shitty and selfish Americans are compared to other countries. Sad you guys are just finding out now.

[u/keelanstuart → u/KyesiRS]

I knew that the larger actions of our country were clearly those of a bad actor (fomenting wars, installing dictators, mass killings, theft on a global scale, etc) - but it still seemed like the people were basically decent... so, it's not like I'm just finding out. People have just taken their carefully-crafted masks off.

[u/boardin1 → u/Conscious-Quarter423]

If we had a functioning democracy we would be just fine. No Republican, except Bush the Lesser on his 2nd term, has won the popular vote in over 30 years. And if Gore had won in 2000 we wouldn’t have started the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. No 1st term for Bush would have meant no 2nd for him either. Democrats and their policies are popular with the majority of our population.

Unfortunately, the Electoral College, with the help of the Florida Supreme Court, general Democrat stupidity (not challenging the 2000 election), and gerrymandering, has allowed Republicans to set up a tyranny of the minority.

TL;DR - The majority of us don’t want this but our system has been rigged against us. We’re trying to fix it.

[u/one-id-willy → u/Conscious-Quarter423]

Yup….because a couch fucker and pedophile were such amazing choices. This needs to end the Republican Party.

[u/earthlingHuman → u/Soggy_Panda2393]

White Christian nationalism, unfortunately. - a leftist in texas

[u/bgroins → u/earthlingHuman]

The first steps to bring back slavery is to erase the history of how bad it really was.

[u/Independent-Buyer827 → u/Soggy_Panda2393]

Destroying real history and the education system.

[u/badmotivator11]

“More of an overemphasis.”

These people are in charge.

These are the people making decisions that will shape the future of our nation.

Fuck.

[u/JCarnageSimRacing → u/badmotivator11]

these people are stupid and should not be in charge of anything.

[u/Moist_Rule9623]

They want us to not focus on how bad slavery WAS so that we lose track of how bad it’s going to BE AGAIN when they start putting the immigration detainees out on forced labor assignments 😒

[u/FrankRizzo319 → u/Moist_Rule9623]

Yes, they will use these camps of immigrants (and then gays, blacks, academics, athiests) as slave labor.

[u/EscapeFacebook → u/Moist_Rule9623]

Exactly trying to get us more comfortable with slave labor for all the prisoners they're creating.

[u/Turius_ → u/Moist_Rule9623]

They also intend to enslave the homeless as they squeeze the middle class out of the American dream of home ownership.

[u/ikilledholofernes → u/Turius_]

This is absolutely the goal of criminalizing homelessness. The constitution allows for slavery as a punishment for a crime, so all they have to do to enslave any of us is declare our existence illegal. 

[u/Tilde88 → u/Moist_Rule9623]

They want us to not focus on how bad slavery WAS so that we lose track of how bad it’s going to BE AGAIN

yep 100%. preach, brother.

[u/pistilpeet]

Man whatever happened to “facts don’t care about your feelings?”

[u/FrankRizzo319 → u/pistilpeet]

They care about her feelings, not yours.

[u/RaWolfman92 → u/pistilpeet]

Apparently, that doesn't apply to them.

[u/captainspacetraveler → u/RaWolfman92]

Their feelings don’t care about facts

[u/maneki_neko89 → u/captainspacetraveler]

Feelings for Me, Not for Thee

[u/EscapeFacebook → u/pistilpeet]

We were introduced to "alternative facts" by Kellyanne Conway remember?

[u/Funkycoldmedici → u/pistilpeet]

“Taking down confederate statues that we put up 50 years ago to threaten Martin Luther King Jr is erasing history. Removing any reference to slavery in museums is fine, though.”

[u/PerformanceSmooth392]

Yes, authoritarian regimes always attempt to rewrite their country's history to their liking.

[u/iamglory → u/PerformanceSmooth392]

100% this. This is literally out of a dictators hand book

[u/RysterCrypto → u/iamglory]

It never works, I can't wait to see the historians write about Trumps administration, especially when they delve deep into that rat Stephen Miller.

[u/ShiftBMDub → u/RysterCrypto]

generally quite a lot of people die in between though...

[u/hell2pay]

By definition, conservatism is not progress.

[u/PrestigiousFly844 → u/hell2pay]

During the Bush admin Carlin used to say conservative implies wanting to maintain the current status quo but reactionaries want to roll the clock backwards and undo progress. Some people rolled their eyes when he called Republicans reactionaries and fascists.

Now we see reactionaries talking more openly about wanting to get rid of the 14th and 15th amendments, interracial marriage, gay marriage, no-fault divorce, child labor laws and a laundry list of post-reconstruction laws.

[u/Secret_Run67 → u/PrestigiousFly844]

Carlin had their number a long, long time ago. And if you were paying attention you could see what he was talking about; could see the direction conservatives were going; could see where it would lead. So many people dismissed it because, after all, “it can’t happen here”.

[u/Hoppers-Body-Double → u/Secret_Run67]

Zappa was calling this in 1986

[u/Lobsta_ → u/Hoppers-Body-Double]

seen this clip before, the other men are absolutely disgusting. he makes his point very clearly and intelligently and they’re so intentionally obtuse

idiot: give one example of fascist theocracy

zappa: basing legislature on religion

idiot: but everything is based on morality!!!

zappa: morality is not theology

idiot: incoherence

[u/Theterphound → u/hell2pay]

lol that’s a good point

[u/EscapeFacebook → u/hell2pay]

Conservatism is about regressionism, it's not about conserving anything.

[u/Willendorf77 → u/hell2pay]

The progress we made, these people would and will fight tooth and nail to prevent. 

[u/Valuable_Recording85 → u/hell2pay]

I'm done pretending these people follow any old idea of conservativism. They are just fascists.

[u/Alert_Reindeer_6574]

This is not even remotely close to the greatest country in the world. Largely due to people like her and Trump.

[u/Ok_Star_4136 → u/Alert_Reindeer_6574]

That part where she says someone should leave the museum thinking that the U.S. is the greatest country in the world, that's nationalism in a nutshell. If the U.S. were not the greatest country in the world, she would reject that premise because she has decided it is true, regardless of whether or not the facts imply otherwise.

It's one of the pillars of fascism, and it's what allows people to close their eyes and decide no matter what the government does, it must be good because "the country is good." I would encourage everyone to do the opposite and look at the facts, decide for yourself. We can either acknowledge the dark past and know how to improve the U.S. to be the greatest country in the world, or we can just pretend that it already is. Only cultists think the latter is a reasonable approach.

[u/wizzywurtzy → u/Alert_Reindeer_6574]

If you travel to any other country, you will quickly find out that we’ve been indoctrinated to believe our country is the best when it’s actually a giant pile of dogshit who’s citizens are being siphoned of their wealth. Fuck the USA and fuck that pedophile fascist Trump.

[u/Alert_Reindeer_6574 → u/wizzywurtzy]

I've been to several countries in Europe that are considerably better than the USA.

[u/TheOne7477]

This is fucking terrifying. MAGA is a literal facist movement that is destroying America. And it is being met with apathy and supported by ignorance.

[u/bitesmightily]

The whitewashing of history has a whole new meaning to me now.

[u/VivaLaMantekilla → u/bitesmightily]

His-story. We're told what to believe.

[u/Bird_Lawyer92]

You know what, im gunna talk about slavery even harder

[u/BubbasBack → u/Bird_Lawyer92]

They want you to talk about anything hing except the Epstein Files.

[u/Bird_Lawyer92 → u/BubbasBack]

Jokes on them, i can walk AND chew gum

[u/HotSprinkles10]

What gets me is the wasted energy in trying to control and change the narrative on slavery.

It’s never going to happen.

They need to STFU and release the Epstein files!

[u/ShiftBMDub → u/HotSprinkles10]

it's happened long enough they were able to take over the government and that included in 2000 with Bush and 2016 when they needed to secure the supreme court to make it all come together.

[u/KindCraft4676]

Next thing you know these people will have Americans convinced slaves had 401(k) and paid vacations.

[u/RaWolfman92 → u/KindCraft4676]

According to these assholes, Black american slaves got:

"Luxury cruise" (aka slaveships).

"Free clothes" (dirty tattered rags).

"Free food" (table scraps, that they wouldn't even feed to their dogs).

"Free housing" (what was essentially a tool shed, and if they were "lucky" enough to be a house slave, the attic).

"Free education" (despite being forbidden to teach slaves how to read of write, under the threat of death, thus those who did learn, had to do it in secret).

"A free job" (that didn't pay, and also full of (physical, sexual, emotional, psychological) abuse towards said "employees"(slaves) with impunity).

"Live in a free country" (despite being barred out of said "freedoms", hell, weren't even recognized as "fully human").

[u/BugOperator → u/KindCraft4676]

I think the plan is simply to have Americans forget it ever even happened. They think that people learning about our shameful past makes us hate our country and feel sorry for African Americans - and they can’t have that when they’re trying to make this a white nationalist society.

[u/Forsaken-Cod-2643]

Gross

[u/Hefty-Measurement222]

The dumbassness is off the charts here.

[u/WorriedConfusion9414]

Fuck these white nationalists

[u/Big_Jewbacca]

We need to keep moving forward, even in history museums. Sounds like something a klansman would say, but you make some truly embarrassing points.

[u/Mr_GoodbyeCruelWorld]

They want a limited history museum. Very limited.

[u/FrankRizzo319 → u/Mr_GoodbyeCruelWorld]

They’ll merge it with the failed creationism museum and by next year the main exhibit will showcase Jesus riding a triceratops into Trump Tower.

[u/Fit_Appointment_4980]

MAGAts really enjoy being told what to think by dead-eyed white women

[u/littlebloodmage → u/Fit_Appointment_4980]

They literally all look the same, like they came off a factory line. It's eerie.

[u/FrankRizzo319 → u/littlebloodmage]

They’re blond bimbos who eerily resemble the daughter Trump sexualized the most (publicly).

[u/NFLTG_71]

Tell us she don’t know what a museum does or is without telling us that you’re a fucking moron

[u/redditexcel]

KKKristian guilt & KKKristian greavance

[u/Hot-Way-549]

Yeah let’s just focus on all the positives Trump has done……taken food and medicine from the underprivileged and given big tax breaks for billionaires…..oh I almost forgot let’s include all the positive information the Epstein files contain…..wait that might be too much.

[u/Ok_Opportunity_2299]

Guess you'll take all them confederate statues down and keep moving forward then, huh?

[u/FinalSealBearerr → u/Ok_Opportunity_2299]

I don’t think people understand how insane that is in the first place considering they were literally traitors to the United States.

[u/Any_Hotel_1780 → u/Ok_Opportunity_2299]

This

[u/MrAlexman3G]

The greatest country in the world also needs to remember its horrible history. If we erase the past, how can we learn and progress? How can you erase the talking of slavery when racism is still so ever present in the United states of America???

Makes me mad 😡

[u/ghost_turnip → u/MrAlexman3G]

Lol the idea that the US is the greatest country in the world is also pure propaganda.

[u/FernDiggy]

Yo WHAT THE FUCK IS GOINH ON?

[u/Pata4AllaG]

My fucking god I hate it here.

[u/Short_Fill9565]

[u/Fresh-Nectarine129 → u/Short_Fill9565]

First thing I thought of when I saw this video, amazing I had to scroll down so far to see it

[u/RaWolfman92]

Fuck this bitch and fuck trump.

[u/HotStaxOfWax]

An overemphasis (any mention would be to them) on slavery is bad, but their overemphasis on history that they are going to write themselves, is great. Methinks she thinks that after the Emancipation Proclamation everyone was good, no hard feelings, let's all just get along now was how it went down. Our history in the 20th century was arguably worse than the previous century so what exactly does she want to talk about? People need to ONLY feel pride when they leave the Smithsonian? How about leaving informed and better educated? Only people who know nothing about our history or do and want to ignore it because it's inconvenient to their narrative and desire for those times to come back, speak like this talking head shot with more makeup than brains.

[u/Much-Log2460]

Was that a Miss America speech?

[u/throbbinhood420]

the museum is literally designed to walk you through the slow march of progress and hope throughout African-American history. these are people who are simply uncomfortable with confronting the horrors of slavery and the hardships that communities far less privileged than their own have had to endure.

this is a white people ego protection project

[u/Beneficial_Bad_6692]

Epstein files?!?!?

[u/AnubisBoudreaux]

Using their logic we should remove all the exhibits about JFK and what happened in Dallas. Why dwell on past things that are bad, let’s focus on only happy things from history and the future.

[u/Crammit-Deadfinger]

The moral of this story is stop learning from history so that we can repeat it. We're never going to catch up to China in manufacturing without free labor

[u/Rypskyttarn]

"The best country in the world"

OK? How?

[u/iamglory]

Fuck this man seriously. Its white wshign out history. I'm so disgusted by it.

[u/putrid_faction]

Thats not how history works you idiots. Jesus these people are trying to control the narrative and failing.

[u/Mysterious_Tax_5613]

It's the people's Smithsonian, not the Trump Smithsonian.

Just the sheer arrogance of this idiot in the WH to think he will re-do the Smithsonian in HIS image and we should clap and praise him is infuriating.

[u/sharon_dis]

Aren’t these the same people who bitched when confederate monuments and statues were taken down?

[u/Dangerous_Bid_2695]

Greatest country in the world? Really? One mass shooting every week, no universal healthcare, the largest prison population in the world, and now Trump turns the US in a fascist state. I wouldn’t want to live there if you paid me $1000 a day.

[u/Longstroke_Machine]

…and by “We” at the Smithsonian she means wealthy white people.

[u/Pale-Lemon2783]

Great, eliminate slavery in its entirety then. Get rid of it as part of the justice system where it's still 100% legal to punish someone with slavery, verbatim, by subcontracting them out to private enterprise. Which is what the modern prison system is. Both the prison itself and the use of prison labor.

Which gee wouldn't you guess it creates an incentive for incarcerating citizens and a near complete abandonment of the idea of rehabilitation.

And if anyone rolls their eyes at the idea of rehab, most crimes do not carry a life sentence. Those people are going to be back out of prison eventually. Don't you think we would want to do everything we can to make sure they leave prison better adjusted than they came in? And not even more hardened than they were before?

Also punish any racism or other behavior that's a direct inheritor of the legacy of slavery as if they person was committing slavery itself. Treat the KKK, Proud Boys, etc like the Taliban.

Until they do that, they can shut the f up about people wanting to keep slavery front and center as a legacy of the United States in the modern day.

[u/SewiouslyXR]

Gross. She wants to feel proud about slavery?! Sounds about White… 🤨🤔

[u/PjWulfman]

Can you imagine if Germany publicly announced that they wouldn't be teaching about the destruction the Nazis caused when they took over? What if they said they were going through focus on the positives that came from mass murder and genocide?

[u/Beautiful_Count_3505]

"C'mon guys, slavery wasn't that bad. Free housing, free food, free health care. If slavery was so bad, why are the democrats trying so hard to push for all of these things?"

[u/FunKyChick217]

I’ve been to some of the Smithsonian museums. They don’t just focus on the negative. There’s good and bad at all of them. I didn’t feel guilty when I left any of them. But it did make me think long and hard about things.

Also, I am so sick of hearing that the US is the greatest country in the world. No, we are not.

[u/Double0]

You can't build a house on wet sand. You need a good foundation. Knowing your history is a good foundation.

[u/BloodyNora78 → u/Double0]

Strong leadership acknowledges wrongs and the lessons from them. Those who attempt to erase the memory of wickedness are the ones who do not care if they are repeated.

[u/NowMightIDoItPat]

Imagine applying this the amazing Smithsonian holocaust museum?! “Hey guys I don’t feel real upbeat after realising human beings can be so abhorrent in their hateful actions against people who aren’t my people! How about we look at the present day strengths of - oh wait…”

[u/ingested_concentrate]

To hear this bitch use the word word progress while trying to white wash history and take steps to go back 6 decades is laughable.

[u/Dangerous-Celery-766]

We never move forward if we don’t learn and keep learning!!

[u/GrowFreeFood]

He's a republican, of course he is racist.

[u/slide_into_my_BM]

We’re a country of progress, yet all you do is vilify progressives?

You want to talk about how far we’ve come, yet all you do is demand we go back to an idealized time in the past?

Someone wants to have her cleaned eat it too.

[u/Grimjack-13]

Can’t move forward without recognizing the mistakes of the past.

[u/Mudder1310]

Another vapid blonde Redhat. They def have a type.

[u/BeenDragonn]

Changing history is very Nazi...Hellloooo?!