Mr. Merrill's History Lesson

  "Today, one of the most important lessons in all of history," Mr. Merrill announced to the class.
  They looked back at him, waiting to hear what such a marvelous lesson would be.
   "The story of the Revolution? The story of the Civil War? Or any of the other wars?" Mr. Merrill asked. "Or, am I going to tell you the story of George Washington, or of John F. Kennedy? Or, maybe it isn't about wars and presidents, at all. Maybe it is about inventors and scientists -- the stories of Edison and Einstein."
  The class waited, wondering what it was Mr. Merrill felt was equal to all those stories.
  "The Salem witch trials," the middle-aged teacher said. He paused a moment, then continued. "Before, I get started, I want to explain why the Salem witch trials are perhaps as important of a history lesson as you will ever get from me. There is a saying -- perhaps you've heard it -- 'Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.' "
   He looked around the class, seeing he had everyone's attention.
   "And, the reason the Salem witch trials make for such an important lesson?" Again, he paused, then sighed. "I confess, as a teacher, I find I like to give lessons you can learn from -- lessons that society should be learning from. Oh, it is wonderful to read about the great events. But, the really wonderful lessons are the ones we can rip right out of the history books and apply in our lives."
   He smiled. He picked up the history book, and turned to pages 21-23. Carefully, he ripped the pages right out of the book, and threw them like a Frisbee across the classroom. "I want these pages to leave the book, and join you in your everyday lives. I want you to take the story of the witch trials, and place it right in your lives -- as real as if the trials were right in this room with you."
   Another pause.
   "Students, I want you to consider all the news of our day, consider on all the issues, all that is happening . . .
   "And, tell me if, in some ways, we are not the same as the same as those who hanged "witches" back in 1693. Now, we don't like to think of ourselves as being as bad as those folks back then. We can see that what they did was clearly wrong, and we don't begin to imagine ourselves as being anything like them.  . . .
    "But, are we?"
     His eyes swept the room.
    "Is there anything in today's newspapers that hints of hysteria towards some people?" He picked a newspaper off his desk and held it up. Are there any stories about the populace being worked up in a frenzy against others? Now, I don't know if any of the 'witches' they executed were harmful, but I'm thinking they weren't. The folks of Salem and the towns there about, took normal-enough and harmless-enough people . . . and decided they were harmful.
    "Can we pick up the today's newspapers, and read of how some people are being considered as harmful to others? Because, if we can, we better be making sure those people really are harmful -- or, we are no better than the people of Salem.
   "Cut from the same cloth."
    Mr. Merrill looked around the class, this time, his pause was even longer. He sighed, closed his eyes so tight that tears almost squeezed out, then looked back up at his class. "If you look close enough, you will see this playing out again and again in our own modern society. We still take people, and falsely accuse them. We still work up a hysteria of hate against them. We still say there is so much evidence against them -- when, there isn't. We still make monsters out of people when they are not.
   "Now, have you ever heard of a hanging judge? Those who convicted the 'witches' back in 1693 were surely that. They got it in their minds that these 'witches' were guilty -- and they hanged them.
     "Are you any better? Are you a hanging judge? If you get it in your mind that someone is harmful or wicked -- when they are not -- if you let the hysteria of society whip you up in judgment against someone else . . . "
    Mr. Merrill walked down an aisle and picked up the pages he had ripped from the history book. He took some tape and taped them back in his book. He would need them for future lessons. He closed the book and put it on the shelve.
     "Then," he said, "the pages of this history book remain closed to you. It's as if you haven't even opened the book."

(Index: Immigration reform, maybe, Lessons in history, stories)