“Don’t Know Much ‘Bout History” - Poor Historical Knowledge Damages Our Critical Thinking
Thinking Well Requires this Important Ingredient
We are in 2024, an election year, a year I call “the Year of the Precipice” for our democracy. To better equip Americans to exercise their civic duty this year, we have begun a series in Democraticus examining important ways of thinking and belief systems that can have a major impact on our democracy’s future. Here we examine the relationship of knowing about our nation’s history to our ability as citizens to critically think.
An Astounding Moment- What was the Cause of the Civil War?
It was a moment that for most Americans who saw it or read about it later should have left them gob smacked.
There it was for all to see. Republican presidential primary candidate Nikki Haley, campaigning in New Berlin, New Hampshire was conducting a town hall meeting in an effort to win her party’s primary in that state. According to PBS, Haley was asked by a New Hampshire voter at this town hall meeting what she thought the cause was of the Civil War? In answer to this question, Haley talked about the role of government and “the freedoms of what people could not do.”[1]
The voter that asked Haley this question responded saying he was “astonished” by her omission of slavery as the cause of the Civil War. The first shots in the Civil War were fired in South Carolina, a state Haley had previously served as governor for six years.[2]
Twelve hours later, Haley had a different answer to the same question saying in a radio interview, “Of course the Civil War was about slavery,” something she called “a stain on America.” She went on to reiterate that “freedom matters. And individual rights and liberties matter for all people.”[3]
Here’s a Question We Should All Ask Ourselves
One could argue that Nikki Haley absolutely knew, as a former governor of the state where the Civil War’s first erupted, what the cause of the Civil War was. Further, one could argue that the reason she did not answer the question correctly was because she knew it would upset the voters of her party’s “base”.
But set that aside for a moment and ask yourself this- do you know the cause of the Civil War? What were you taught in school was the cause of the deadliest war in our history?[4]
The fact is, many Americans do not know the Civil War’s actual cause and if they believe they know, it is often incorrect. Further, what many Americans were taught in school as to the Civil War’s origins of this war.
Why Does this Matter So Much?
Knowing historically documented facts like the cause of our Civil War matters. In a democracy, such facts matter greatly to its citizens. To be able to critically think in the context of our nation’s public square, one must accurately know what actually happened and why it happened. We must know not only recent events about our nation, but we must know what has occurred over the course of our history. And yes, that does indeed mean that we Americans must really know our history. Historical ignorance means we have little to no context to understand current events.
Sadly, the lyrics to the 1964 song, Wonderful World, by the legendary Sam Cooke[5] referenced above, are all too true for many Americans. Just as the song lyrics say, we Americans really “don’t know much about history”. Accurate historical knowledge is a “must have” for Americans to think critically in the public square.
The State of Americans’ Historical Knowledge
Yet, the deficit of Americans’ historical knowledge of their own country is clearly showing, much to our national embarrassment. Saba Naseem, writing for the Smithsonian Magazine puts forth as evidence of our dearth of historic knowledge a 2014 National Assessment of Education (NAEP) survey which found only eighteen percent of U.S. eight graders were “proficient or above” in U.S. history.[6] In 2022 this same assessment found that the average U.S. history score at eighth grade decreased by five points compared to 2018 and by 9 points compared to 2014.[7]
Our historical ignorance is not only getting worse, it is embarrassing. Naseem, in the same Smithsonian article, also cites a 2014 study by PoliTech, a student group at Texas Tech University, which went around campus asking three questions- “Who won the Civil War?”, “Who is our vice president?”, and “Who did we gain independence from?” The dismal results, according to Naseem, ranged from “the South” to the first question to “I have no idea” for all three of them. “However, when asked about the show Snookie starred in (Jersey Shore) or Brad Pitt’s marriage history, they answered correctly.”[8]
Understanding Our Present Requires Understanding Our Past
In an opinion piece for The Washington Post, Max Boot highlights a survey by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni where “half the respondents believed the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation or the War of 1812 were before the American Revolution.”[9] It appears that Americans’ abysmal level of civic knowledge is only exceeded by our horrible lack of knowledge about history, especially American history. Yet, one cannot be civically literate without being “historically literate” about, at minimum, basic U.S. history. It is impossible. Why is that? Boot responds to that question best in his opinion piece:
“You simply can’t understand the present if you don’t understand the past. There is no more alarming study of the consequence of historical ignorance than Donald Trump. He has adopted a foreign policy mantra of “America First” seemingly without realizing…that the original America First Committee of 1940-1941 was sympathetic to the Nazis. And he has embraced tariffs without being aware of the disastrous consequences of the 1930 Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act.”[10] (emphasis mine)
Without basic historical literacy, it is impossible to be civically literate as the two are interconnected and interdependent. Whether one realizes it or not, without basic historical knowledge, one becomes literally lost in the civic landscape without even knowing it. Worse yet, as mentioned above, the ability to critically think, a key citizenry skill to properly participate in the public square, requires having basic U.S. historical knowledge to think critically about in the first place. That is what history is in the context of civic literacy- it is knowledge of the past to think about critically in the present in order to conceptualize and understand the civic world around us.
Historical Knowledge Prevents Us from Being Held Captive by Manipulative Leaders
In turn, this knowledge allows us to effectively navigate the public square and respond responsibly to current events (civic involvement). Without a knowledge of history, one is literally “thinking about nothing”, making us prone to jumping to false and incorrect conclusions, as well as accepting false narratives, and thus becoming subject to the worst kind of manipulation by demagogic leaders. This manipulation starts with not only civic illiteracy, but with the historical ignorance that it nurtures. The result is our minds use almost exclusively binary “either-or thinking” steeped in logical fallacies, as well as ignorance-based lack of knowledge or on incorrect information that we mistakenly believe and accept are “facts” (aka- “alternate facts”, also known as lies).
Historical Knowledge Helps Us to Identify Falsehoods and Inaccuracies
The use of one’s knowledge of history can be put to work productively every day, in every situation, small and large. Michael Schaub of the Los Angeles Times reported of an example of someone putting their knowledge of history to use practicing discernment in their civic awareness. It happened when a parent noticed something about their child’s world geography textbook. The textbook had a graphic showing immigration patterns which stated that “The Atlantic Slave Trade between the 1500s and 1800s brought millions of workers from Africa to the southern United States to work on agricultural plantations.” The child’s mother immediately focused on the words “worker” and “immigration” in the textbook.
Both words clearly convey the idea of “wages” and “voluntarily” leaving one country to come to another. Both ideas, with a basic knowledge of history, can quickly recognized as patently false. Slaves were not workers, they were slaves- unpaid for their work. And these slaves were not immigrants. They did not voluntarily immigrate from Africa to the United States. Case closed, but it would not have been closed had it not been for a person’s accurate knowledge of history and the confidence to use it civically. The textbook’s publisher revised and reprinted the textbook.[11]
Historical Knowledge Allows Us to See Repeating and Dangerous Trends
Another example illustrating the importance of Americans having accurate historical knowledge to be civically literate is being able to see trends and history repeating itself. A major example of this is the Republican dominated state legislatures passing legislation after the 2020 election purportedly to “prevent voter fraud”. In reality, there was little if any voter fraud in the 2020 elections, but nevertheless, these Republican dominated state legislatures passed legislation that placed more and more requirements on voters that instead of facilitating voting, actually impeded voting access. And, it was all done in the name of “reducing voter fraud”.
Congress even considered a bill (the We the People Act) that would have overturned these state laws. It did not pass the Senate. While the House passed the We the People Act, the Senate did not even take the bill up due to its filibuster rule, which requires sixty votes to debate (no Republican Senators supported it). When the bill died by failing to reach debate, every Republican Senator stood behind their Senate Minority leader, who said the bill was not necessary as it would “federalize” our elections. The message of Republican Senators was that each state should be able to choose how they wish to authorize and restrict voting as well as conduct elections, not the federal government. Sounds reasonable, does it not?
But, if one knows pre-Civil War history, it does not seem reasonable. In fact, it is alarming. On its face, without any knowledge of history, this argument of not “federalizing” our elections may sound fine. But, historian Heather Cox Richardson points out that with this position of advocating for state-controlled elections, “…Republicans are defending the same principle that Senator Stephen A. Douglas advanced when he debated Senate candidate Abraham Lincoln in Illinois in 1858.”[12] Douglas put forward his idea of “popular sovereignty”, which advocated that those living in the territories which were not yet states should be allowed to determine if their state would be “free or slave”. Lincoln saw this popular sovereignty concept for what it was- something that did not comport to American democratic principles. It would guarantee the spread of enslavement of Black Americans and eventually, these territories, once becoming slave states, would eventually outnumber free states.[13]
This was no small thing with huge consequences for our nation, including a few years later, a civil war. Once one understands the serious problems with popular sovereignty in nineteenth century America, it facilitates our ability to see it rearing its head again in the twenty first century within the context of how we vote. We can start to see the enormity of its impact, both past and present, why we should know about it, and in order to safeguard democracy, regard it with extreme caution.
Other Ways Historical Knowledge Benefits Critical Thinking
Historian Jon Meachum points to other important benefits of being historically literate- knowing the times our country has faced and successfully come through trial and tribulation helps give us hope and strengthens our national psyche. As Meachum puts it, “…To know what has come before is to be armed against despair.”[14] Meacham astutely adds, “…One of the points of reflecting on the past is to prepare us for actions in the present.”[15]
What’s Next?
Next we will examine the major reason Americans’ critical thinking is impeded by lack of historical knowledge- the incomplete and poor quality of the American history that is taught today, if it is taught at all. We will also focus on why efforts by many elected officials on how and what U.S. history is taught today has such dire consequences for our democracy.
We will continue exploring topics like this gone that are not given near enough time and emphasis in our civic education efforts, if they are even taught at all. Democracy is so important. But it’s hard to keep, and it’s easy to lose. It’s up to us, and only us, to protect it. Support democracy, become a Democratist! Spread the word!
[1] Presidential candidate Nikki Haley left out slavery when asked what caused the Civil War. Then she backtracked | PBS NewsHour, December 28, 2023 11:45 AM EST.
[2] Presidential candidate Nikki Haley left out slavery when asked what caused the Civil War, PBS Newshour, December 28, 2023, Ibid.
[3]Presidential candidate Nikki Haley left out slavery when asked what caused the Civil War, PBS Newshour, December 28, 2023, Ibid.
[4]“ Why Was the Civil War so Lethal?”, www.digitalhistory, uh.edu.
[5] Wonderful World (Sam Cooke Song), Wikipedia, Ibid.
[6] “How Much U.S. History Do Americans Actually Know? Less Than You Think”, by Saba Naseem, May 28, 2015, Smithsonian Magazine, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-much-us-history-do-americans-know-less-than-you-think-180/955431
[7] Assessments - U.S. History | NAEP (ed.gov)
[8] “How Much U.S. History Do Americans Actually Know? Less Than You Think”, by Saba Naseem, May 28, 2015, Smithsonian Magazine, Ibid
[9] “Opinion: Americans’ Ignorance of History is a National Scandal”, by Max Boot, February 20, 2019, 12:39 p.m. CST, The Washington Post, https://washingtonpost.com/opinions/americans-ignorance-of-history-is-a-national-scandal/2019/02/20/b8be683c-352-11e9-854a-7a14d7fec96_story.html
[10] “Opinion: Americans’ Ignorance of History is a National Scandal”, by Max Boot, February 20, 2019, 12:39 p.m. CST, Ibid
[11] “Texas Textbook Calling Slaves ‘Immigrants’ to be Changed, After Mom’s Complaint”, by Michael Schaub, October 5, 2015 9:22 AM PT, Los Angeles Times, https://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-et-jc-texas-textbooks-calls-slaves-immigrants-20151005-story.html
[12] Letters from an American, Heather Cox Richardson, June 22, 2021, Copyright 2021
[13] Letters from an American, Heather Cox Richardson, June 22, 2021, Ibid
[14] The Soul of America, The Battle for Our Better Angels, by Jon Meachum, pg. 10, Copyright 2018, Merewhether LLC, Random House, A Division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York
[15] The Soul of America, The Battle for Our Better Angels, by Jon Meachum, pg. 259, Copyright 2018, Ibid