OUR HISTORY
E. Perryman 8.25.25

In 1994, my father and I went overseas together. We had a enjoyable visit with Sifu Philipp Hackert and saw wonderful sights. We also visited Dachau. My dad became visibly upset. His reaction was to tear it all down. I said to him no, this site, along with many of the others that were much worse, must remain to pay tribute.

My dad told me later that he changed his mind when he shared his reaction with a woman at his bridge game who had been a child in the camp. She told him “Bruce, we must keep these grounds in tact as a sobering but crucial reminder.”

There are so many things that I was never taught in the 1970s/1980s about American History that I have fortunately learned in the last 20 years. Our culture is impacted positively or negatively by the seismic world events of the past. We do not exist in a vacuum; effects are systemic and long lasting.

Thank goodness for brave people and the progress we’ve made in educating the public in recent years. I remember being the one to tell my parents about Rosa Parks. It boggles my mind how much critical history has been cherry picked especially in mid 20th century. Shameful.

History continues to repeat itself when we erase these reminders out of our inability to deal with the worst of humanity. I believe we are loved unconditionally despite our malevolent human flaws. In the words of Anne Frank “I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly good at heart.”

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