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WELCOME TO THE FOURTH ISSUE
OF HISTORY NOW |
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National holidays often conjure up images of family gatherings,
picnics and barbeques, jubilant children celebrating a
day off from school, and newspaper advertisements of department
store sales. Yet as historians and history teachers it
is our task to remind our students that these are days
of commemoration and remembrance, not simply days of celebration.
In this issue of HISTORY NOW, a group of noted scholars
provides a closer look at the origins and the significance
of six of our major national holidays: Independence Day,
Thanksgiving, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, Labor Day, and
Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
David Waldstreicher shows us the way in which the commemoration
of the Declaration of Independence served to instill patriotism
and devotion to the republican experiment that was the
United States in our nation's early generations. Catherine
Clinton traces the origins of Thanksgiving in the post
Civil War era and provides us with a closer look at the
woman who spearheaded the movement to create what has
become one of the most cherished American holidays. Kenneth
Jackson examines the means by which Americans honor those
who have fallen in defense of our country. Joshua Freeman
reflects upon the meaning of Labor Day and the contributions
of the American working class. Finally, Jim Horton explores
the role of Martin Luther King, Jr. in the civil rights
movement that changed our nation's history and moved us
closer to our national goal of social equality and justice.
In these thoughtful essays, each scholar raises and answers
critical questions about what these holidays commemorate
and how they came to be designated as days of public recognition.
But these essays do more; they point the way to how we,
as educators, can use these holidays in the classroom
to better explain crucial eras or movements in American
history. As always, we have asked a group of skilled,
experienced, and creative teachers to provide exemplary
lesson plans at various grade levels. And, in this issue
as in every issue, our librarian extraordinaire, Mary-Jo
Kline, provides a guide to materials on the web and in
the library that will help you create lessons of your
own.
A happy Fourth of July to you all!
Carol Berkin
Editor, History Now
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Editor - Carol Berkin, Associate Editor - Lesley S. Herrmann,
Managing Editor - Karina Gaige, Designer - Sabina Daley, Archivist
- Mary-Jo Kline, Contributors - Stephanie Clegg, Catherine Clinton,
Joshua B. Freeman, James Oliver Horton, Kenneth T. Jackson,
Tedd Levy, Roberta McCutcheon,Virginia Howard Mullan, David
Waldstreicher
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