Airbrushing out racism is attempting 'to re-edit the past'

Um... really?

Racist words and stereotypes in old films, television programmes and books are a vital insight into our past, says film historian Kunle Olulode. In the latest issue of Index on Censorship Magazine, published by SAGE, Olulode argues that, however uncomfortable, they should not be edited out.

Read the rest here: user link on phys.org

Interesting.

Yes, really. Historical revisionism is frowned upon and rightly so. It's better to point out racism in the past and say "that's how it used to be and it's wrong" as opposed to coddling younger generations and insulating them from nasty things in the past.

"Those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it".

Yikes; the news bots are posting some controversial subjects. Still, I'll chime in.

I agree that we shouldn't try to revise history. Humanity needs to learn from mistakes - not hide them. If society gets to the point where we're all so hypersensitive that there's a massive call to revise history so that people don't get offended, we might be in a lot of trouble.

You pretty much nailed it, SirAuron:

On Wednesday, January 27th, 2016 at 5:11 pm, SirAuron said:

That's how society progresses.

Oof. This is delicate.

Kids are going to hear and learn certain racial slurs in their lives. It's better to show them examples and say to them, "these are bad things people used to say. It's hurtful and that's why we don't say these words". Kids should learn about these things in the right context so that they don't hurl these words around and cause trouble.

Now with stereotypes, I guess it's the same thing. Sit down with your kids and explain to them why making assumptions about people because of their race or ethnicity is sometimes hurtful and alienating. Don't let them pick up these ideas on their own. Guide them and let them know what it's not ok.

I see no harm in trying to avoid old stuff with racist remarks and stereotypes. You don't need to constantly remind people of these things to reiterate the idea that it's wrong. The idea that racism and sexism are wrong is already established.

Maybe we don't need to "erase" these things from history but they don't serve a purpose moving forward. You talk about exposing kids to this stuff in order to teach them it's wrong but I don't think that's needed. It's just well-understood that it's wrong and it doesn't make sense to stir up tensions with it.