Worried About “Whitewashing”?
Our mission at Knowable World is to be the best place for parents to go to help their child make sense of the world we live in.
That includes handling the difficult topics in history.
Case in point: Islamic history.
We are studying Asia, Africa, and the World We Live In this year in the live classes of Knowable World. That means covering a wide range of topics from China and Japan, to Sub-Saharan Africa and India, and, yes, the Islamic World.
When we say we aim to give our students the world, we don’t hold back.
There are ten major cultural blocks that make it up, and we cover them all, to varying degrees. It’s important for students to see what this world is–all of it.
Islamic culture is what we call a “cardinal culture” at Knowable World. Cardinal cultures are cultures with the will and the means to change the course of history. Often what this means–and it certainly does in the case of Islamic culture–is that they resort to violence and war to make those changes.
Islamic history begins with just that. When Muhammad fled from Mecca to Medina in the Hejira of c.622 AD, he didn’t just build the “umma,” or community of followers in his temporary refuge. He built an army of followers, and then deployed that army in the Conquest of Arabia (c.622-32 AD).
We certainly emphasize in our lessons that Islam’s five pillars are “faith, prayer, fasting, almsgiving, and pilgrimage.” There is no violence inherent in that, but Muhammad was not just a prophet. He was a warlord. We don’t shy away from that.
When Muhammad finished conquering Arabia, he sent letters to the neighboring kingdoms and empires–including to Khosrow II of Persia and Heraclius I of the Byzantine empire. His message was simple: convert, or be conquered.
Tolerationism is Not Normal in History
This is the message of religious triumphalism that Muhammad himself embedded in Islamic Culture, and which has been so difficult to eradicate.
When Muslims believe in “jihad,” they can–and many do–assign the meaning of a personal struggle to maintain piety. But when it comes to history, that is not the dominant meaning. The dominant meaning is “holy war.”
The Muslims waged “holy war” for over a thousand years, conquering Northern Africa, most of Iberia, and even India. This lasted until they (the Ottoman Empire) besieged Vienna in 1683. Only this time, they lost, and they started losing consistently.
Ever since, Islamic culture has been struggling to define its relationship to the world. Having been politically subordinate and even disintegrated by European empires, the Muslims tried to regain control of history by embracing nationalism, such as per the “Arab nationalism” that fueled the original wars against Israel.
And then, having continued to lose, they began to gravitate towards cosmopolitanism–a “live and let live” attitude.
Sadly, this is where America failed miserably. By not responding in force to the American hostage crisis that was part of the Iranian Revolution, President Jimmy Carter unleashed the phenomenon of Islamism on the world. And we’ve been dealing with it ever since.
History is Not Patriotism
Many of us will never forget where we were in that first moment we found out the Twin Towers had been struck on 9-11.
We live in a world, where the cultural block of the Islamic world is characterized by a deep internal struggle between cosmopolitanism and Islamism. We see civil wars throughout the block. We recently witnessed the Islamist takeover of Syria, which is largely the product of the failed American “War on Terror.”
When we cover these realities, notice that America’s role, for better and for worse, is definitely covered. History is not patriotism.
But there is no hiding the fact that Islamic culture’s deeply embedded triumphalism is the primary reason for all the terrorism and wars we see in relation to that culture. Whatever can be said of Israel’s faults, if the Palestinians were not enamored of the triumphalist message of Hamas, there would have been peace in the region long ago.
We face that head on. Just like we face the story of American slavery head on. Just like we face European colonialism head on.
History is about the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
At Knowable World, our goal is to show your students the world, not some cherry-picked, comfortable version of it. To know more about our approach, please see my essay “What is Present-Centrism?” on our blog.
History is about the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
When it comes to our kids, for whom we hope to provide more and better than we got from our education, it is crucial that we embrace this approach. Kids naturally and rightly tune out when stories are merely about other people that lived a long time ago, somewhere else.
What does it have to do with me? That is the entirely proper response we once had, and which they continue to have, if we force-feed them a subject divorced from real life.
History is cognition. It is learning about reality. But why? If done right, it’s because what we learns matters. It is significant.
History Your Kids Will Love
You won’t have to take my word for it. Knowable World’s students will show you. As part of a new video blog series, I’ll also be interviewing my own students, and you will see what students at all levels of Knowable World are able to achieve. I am proud to say, there is nothing else like it.
And if you’re looking for just a taste of what it might be like for your family to participate, I invite you to find our Anchor Fact ™ series of printables and mini-lessons on Youtube and on this site. You can also join the growing community of parents in the Knowable World group on Facebook.
The revelation and explanation of the world we live in awaits.
Isn’t it time you made history your family’s favorite subject?
Scott Powell is a historian and teacher who has been teaching homeschooled students online for nearly 20 years (as “History at Our House”). He is the author of three books including “The 4-Hour Historian”, “The History of Now”, and the upcoming “The History of Tomorrow”. His present-centric approach was developed from the conviction that history is an essential subject that is vital for anyone who wants to live a fully engaged life and make sense of the world they live in.