[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 21 (Wednesday, February 2, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H333-H334]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      TEACHING HISTORY IN AMERICA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Green) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, and still I rise, a proud African 
American. I rise today because we are into Black History Month, the 
second day, and I rise today because I am very much concerned about 
history in this country. For you see, Mr. Speaker,

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there are efforts across the length and breadth of the country to 
distort history and, in many instances, not to allow it to be taught.
  Can you imagine Black history not being taught in this country? That 
would make Black History Month more important, but my hope is that at 
some point we don't need Black History Month because history will be 
taught every day and there won't be a need to accentuate the things 
that have happened to African Americans in this country. But the notion 
that we can't teach the true history of what happened to us in the 
United States of America and what happened to the people in the United 
States of America is offensive.
  And it is not just about African Americans, by the way. It is also 
about Jewish people, not being able to teach what happened to Jewish 
people. Can you imagine more than six million people murdered, and we 
can't teach this in our schools? The number is not known truly. Huge 
number. And what happened to them? How were they killed? They weren't 
just murdered in concentration camps. Many of them were murdered in 
their homes, in their yards, in the ghettos. And that can't be taught?

  If we can't teach Black history, we probably won't be able to teach 
the Trail of Tears and what happened to the indigenous Americans, how 
they were harmed by virtue of the State itself intentionally causing 
them to receive certain diseases. We won't be able to teach what 
happened to the Asians who came to this country, internment camps.
  Black History Month is very important to us. We have to have it, but 
more than have Black History Month, we have got to have the history of 
what has happened taught because those who don't learn the lessons of 
history are doomed to repeat the lessons of history.
  And finally this: This House needs to go on record. We need to go on 
record. We need to take a stand. We need to let the world know that we 
will support the teaching of history in schools. To do anything less is 
to cause us to be placed in the position of having not lived up to the 
promises of this country. We should do it. I hope that this House will 
go on record appropriately doing so.

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