Getting History Straight

Headline: “Biden declares that the 1915 mass massacre of Armenians was a ‘genocide’, breaking with tradition amid tense relations with Turkey.” Because it would offend the rulers of Turkey, this has been a subject that American presidents have been reluctant to discuss, even though the facts have not been in doubt.

No government should be complicit in covering up monstrous acts. True painful facts should be exposed to the light of day. It might be a good idea for the U.S. to commission a panel of respected historians to document all the instances in which our country had transgressed human rights. Let’s put on record our own ignominious failings. We’ll be more likely to avoid repeating them, and we’ll have moral standing to condemn those of other nations.