At 05:43 PM 10/26/97 -0600, you wrote:
>Wendy:
>
>Please read a little history.
>All this drivel makes me think I should seek another profession...
>
>george
>
>=================

        You are the one who needs to read some history, Mr. Bauer, and seeking
another profession may not be a bad idea.
        The U.S. is a diverse society and has been almost from its inception -- "e
pluribus unum" is not an idle thought, but a statement of national purpose
in a very real sense.  Understanding one another, seeking common ground and
purpose, and dealing with our differences are a central part of our history
as a nation.  That we have not always succeeded and are still struggling
with the issues does not change that.  In an earlier post, that I did not
respond to, you mentioned an America that was one and totally united. Such
a country has never existed except in the imagination.  Only if you ignore
the long history of discrimination against African Americans and their
resultant poverty and deprivation; the anti-Catholicism and nativism that
was so strong in the 19th century; anti-semitism, etc. can you posit an
America that was not diverse and not struggling with the tensions inherent
in that diversity.
        Museums can and should be part of the process by which we deal with our
diversity and find common ground.  Far from drivel, the post you so
characterize is a good statement of worthy goals for the profession.

>


William H. Mulligan, Jr. [[log in to unmask]]
Associate Professor of History
Director
Forrest C. Pogue Public History Institute
Murray State University
Murray, KY 42071-0009
Phone:(502) 762-6571
Fax:  (502) 762-6587
Home Phone:(502) 753-9033