Journal #34 (Extra)

Michelle Romero
English 48A
Dr. Scott Lankford

Ch. 6 John Brown & Abraham Lincoln

"'Are you going to tell kids that Thomas Jefferson didn't believe in Jesus? Not me!' a textbook editor exclaimed to me" (179).

I was shocked at this statement, not only because I can't believe the editor actually said that so bluntly, but also because I had never thought that such seemingly insignificant details would be altered to perpetuate a specific society value. Who cares?

I mean seriously, why does Jefferson have to be depicted by authors as a believer in Jesus, if in fact he was not? Does it really change anything about the significance of his achievements or contributions? Can't you just be a good person or role model without having religion? Apparently, the white-Anglo-Saxon protestant editor would say no. I never thought about what a difference it would make if a great leader or "hero" in American history was not religious. As I sit here and think about it, most of the ones that I can come up with off the top of my head, are portrayed as religious. Who knows now! I don't think it is that big of a deal to write that Jefferson was not a believer in Christ, but I definitely see now how portraying all great leaders as Christians does perpetuate a certain belief over time. SCARY!

It also makes me wonder what puts these ideas in to our heads to alter details like this. Who pays the editor really? Who tells the editor what to put in and what to take out? What ideas to perpetuate? Are we really that much more censored and regulated by government, and so subtly that we have no clue? I do not really like where this is going….YIKES.