Can something be not your fault, but still your responsibility? Germans still hold themselves accountable for the atrocities that were committed during WWII. They understand what they as a people, did wrong and they continue to teach it to students to prevent it from ever happening again. Teaching students about the Holocaust is a requirement in German schools. Most German students have been to a concentration camp or Holocaust museum. They came to terms with what their forefathers have done and accepted their history, so why doesn’t America?
Coates explains that America has a serious issue with not coming to terms with its history. Instead, we are taught that “America should not be liable for something that happened a hundred and fifty years ago since none of us currently alive are responsible”-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Throughout the years, since America’s birth as a nation, America had committed many atrocities all over the world, but we still continue to glorify our nation without looking at the bad. What does it mean to call our nation the best and the greatest if we don’t have the nerve to accept all the bad we’ve done. “The idea of reparations is frightening not simply because we might lack the ability to pay. The idea of reparations threatens something much deeper—America’s heritage, history, and standing in the world…reparations—by which I mean the full acceptance of our collective biography and its consequences—is the price we must pay to see ourselves squarely”. Coates says that’s the reparations that America needs to give, but we won’t because it threatens our internal belief that we are the best, we are the greatest nation in the world. America needs to come to terms with its racism and racial inequality or else it will continue to be plagued by the racial tension we continue to see in the current day. The reparations do not have to be monetary, in fact, it will most likely never be monetary. The reparations America needs is the acceptance of its past, to pave the way to a better, more united future.
This blog post which I wrote for blog 11/11, is by far, my best post. I liked how I weaved in my quotes into my writing. This made it so my sentences flowed very well and didn’t seem too choppy. I think I answered the question of the blog, can something be not your fault, but still your responsibility, fully and with many details. This blog post explains how because Americans today are silent and don’t want to take the responsibility to learn about their history in detail, many issues continue to plague our society. In this blog post, I made the comparison of American society to post-Nazi German society and I was able to explain my point thoroughly. Overall, I feel that I wrote very well and I incorporated external information here the best.
I agree with everything you said in your reasoning for posting this blog for this assignment. Your use of quotes and examples is pretty much seamless, creating a flow and tone that is very impressive. Additionally, you neither sway nor wait to get to the point and your execution is very clearly careful. This is a well written blog, and an overall good selection for this assignment.
I like your comparison in the beginning because it shows that countries are willing to pay reparations for their atrocities, and as a dominant world power, the U.S needs to be setting an example for the global stage. Furthermore, I liked how you pointed out the obstacles that prevent our nation from progressing forward while using a blended quote. Then you begin to mention what can be done to ameliorate the issue while explaining why it probably won’t happen because of how it requires the people to essentially act more humble, accepting, and to let their nation be held accountable. I like how you mention the lack of communication, awareness, and education that some Americans exhibit while comparing two societies with some outside information. Great structure, flow, detail, comparisons, and the message you’re trying to convey is clear.
I saw the thought process and level of complexity that went through your mind as you were writing this piece. It seems like you were encouraged to write about this subject because of how much you have to share. I could tell that this is something you have witnessed and have put deep thought into before.