Rewriting history to suit ourselves leads to repeated mistakes

Rewriting history seems to be a favorite sport these days.

Presidential spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ most recent versions focused on the civil rights struggle and many of its valiant leaders, like Congressman John Lewis; the public ridiculing of any attachment of the robust economy inherited by the Trump administration with the Obama administration; and the denial of accusations of sexual misconduct by President Donald Trump.

Sanders is not alone.

As a journalist who spent 40 years reporting on the ongoing life of a religious system, required to have documentable facts to report, I am aware that as years go by, bending history to justify personal opinions and push agendas is rampant in every system.

The saddest fact is, a gullible public accepts the rewrites without challenge, too busy or easily swayed to do their own fact checking. Or, in the present day, unwilling to recognize Forbes’ recent definition that facts are supported by documented evidence.

I was a teenager turning young adult when I received my first lesson in this phenomena via the college athletics world. A group of frustrated university alumni who couldn’t control the coach with buying houses, players or country-club memberships began the effort to oust him. Gov. Happy Chandler named this rewrite of history when he endeavored to get the Board of Trustees to look at the facts of comparative difficulty of schedules, recruiting restrictions as well as wins and losses.

I saw it repeatedly in the religious system where I worked as new leaders were celebrated as they were called, briefly respected and perhaps loved by a few, and quickly vilified, especially when their good work brought them recognition beyond the borders of Kentucky, and opportunities to take their skills into bigger arenas.

And today, it is a daily political occurrence, locally and nationally. As both journalist and leadership-development specialist, I have questions to pose to people as I consult across the country:

What’s in it for you to rewrite this story, without reference to documents that hold the facts? Does it make you feel bigger, better, more in control? Are you getting some satisfaction by denigrating a person’s or system’s reputation and legacy, sabotaging the system’s capacity to build on what was good, moving forward effectively?

Whatever your differences of opinion with past leadership, what was your role in whether the relationship succeeded or not? What point of privilege do you fear losing if a leader does their job effectively? What is it that attracts you to a leader, and why does that attraction wane?

Are you willing to participate in the creative work of broadening perspectives through differences, or are you so fearful of the new and different that you have to belittle or negate it? Are you aware of the patterns of your own behavior in regard to leadership? When we left the kings and queens behind during the revolution and created this improbable and fragile democracy, did we bring ongoing revolution with us?

One of my jobs as a religious journalist whose professional life involved setting the context for the election of a new leader was to name the contributions of the old. As years pass in any system, patterns of both strengths and weaknesses can be clearly seen, which lead to understanding the challenges a new leader faces, as well as the building blocks on which next steps can be taken.

All of this, of course, involves a sense of self confidence and maturity on the part of both leaders and followers that is greater than ego and willing to own truth regarding both the system and themselves. Those who ignore history or try to rewrite it, whatever the reason, are destined to repeat it, to the detriment of themselves and the system for which they claim love and loyalty.

As a consultant, I was once accused of “pressing too hard for the truth.” It’s an accusation I take as a compliment, as well as a continuing refusal to be party to the rewriting of the history of any system.

This story was originally published December 13, 2017 at 2:18 PM with the headline "Rewriting history to suit ourselves leads to repeated mistakes."