“It’s For The Children” – Revisionist Edition
December 17th, 2009 by SocProf and tagged Institutional Racism, Mass Violence, Structural Violence
Years ago (1998, to be exact), the French justice system finally went after Vichy heavyweight, collaborator extraordinaire, and all-around fascist asshole and mass murderer from the 1940s to the 1960s Maurice Papon, finally finding him guilty of crimes against humanity. Before his trial started, Papon gave an interview in which he hoped to make his case to the public before facing the judges. He failed miserably, first by throwing back angrily at the journalist the photos of Jewish girls he had sent to their death. Then, he seriously explained that he sent entire Jewish families to the camps, even though the Germans only demanded the men, because – family values! – he, in his compassionate heart, did not want to break up the families… better have them all killed together!
I am bringing this up because this “humanitarian” reinterpretation of history seems to be one of the strategies of revisionism and negationism. Case in point, you all remember Rabbit-Proof Fence?
Here comes the revisionism: this was not colonial oppression or structural racism:
Story of Aboriginal girls’ flight that inspired film under revisionist attack – Australasia, World – The Independent via kwout
The real story, according to this gentleman? Can you spot the stereotype?
Story of Aboriginal girls’ flight that inspired film under revisionist attack – Australasia, World – The Independent via kwout
Well, of course, everybody knows these savages (”wild”) are hot-blooded and young girls have sex with whites (rather than, you know, white men raping Aborigines girls… which totally never happens in colonial contexts). So, you see, it was for the children – family values again – and to temper those wild instincts!
But then, such paternalism is quite often used as an alibi for patriarchal violence, especially directed at racial and ethnic minorities whose oppression (and sometimes massacre) is reinterpreted as paternal protection.
General note: any argument couched in some variation of “it’s for the children” is usually not worth listening to.
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