The Harry Potter Alliance

By Amanda Bolton

November 27, 2008

The Journey, Part 3: History and remembrance

Another leg of our journey took us to some historic and memorable places, some of which you’ve very likely heard of, and some which you quite possibly have not. These places made us stop and reflect, to think about our shared past and what is coming up in our near future. Our mood here was sombre, respectful, and it was very interesting to see how all the other people also visiting these sites were reacting. Some were excited, some were quietly reflective, some seemed to see it only as a neat looking place just as they would any other statue or pretty place.

Our first stop took us to a very famous place: Mount Rushmore! Yes, it is very big. And yes, a lot of people from all over come to visit. It seemed like the quidditch world cup, with so many different people coming to one place. I bet you could’ve found a car from every state in the parking lot, as well as a few other countries. I even saw one from Hawaii! I guess they put a hover charm on their car and flew it over?It was quite interesting to walk up to the base of the little mountain and see the presidents from a new perspective. Even more interesting, there were guided tours going on, with the guides talking about the history of the giant sculpture as well as the presidents. We happened to be near one of the tours, so we kept catching bits and pieces. As another tourist remarked who was wandering the same pace as us, “I noticed they are leaving out quite a lot of the history.” They only mentioned the happy things and left out the more colorful and sometimes disturbing pieces of history about the presidents. While they were all great men, heroes do not have to be perfect. Harry wasn’t, nor Dumbledore or any of the other noble people in the HP world. I feel we do a disservice to everyone by pretending everything in history was all happy wonderful, with constant progress forward. It wasn’t. We took steps back. One could say, we have been the last few years. I don’t mean the economic crisis, I mean the eroding human rights and liberties. (And I’m talking about many countries, not just one.) We are at an amazing point in history, where we choose where we go next. There is thankfully a lot of momentum to move us to a great future that takes into account the environment and sustainability; a long-term future rather than a couple year future. One that upholds human rights and basic respect and decency for all Earths people. But we are still at a great risk of doing nothing, not enough, or going backwards.

Each president on Mount Rushmore was chosen because he ushered in a new era for the USA. Washington saw the birth of the nation, Jefferson expanded the country west, Lincoln reunited the north and south and freed the slaves, and Teddy Roosevelt brought progressive reforms that made the USA we know today. As I explored the site, I wondered if any others might be added in the future, and what their transition might mark.

Our next stop took us to somewhere less known. The Crazy Horse Memorial is very near Mount Rushmore, and it is privately funded, so if you get the chance go! They need donations to finish their work. Once finished, it’ll be even bigger than Mount Rushmore. It was started decades ago by a man who would drag his heavy equipment up the mountain every day. It still has a long ways to go, but it is very inspiring. The site also has a great museum with history of some Native American groups from the area. I wish I knew more about the history of the people of the “new world.” We often hear about such a sad history, filled with terrible hardship, but there are also wonderful things that I think everyone would find inspiring. It is important to hear the good and bad parts of history, and not focus only on the bad, just as we shouldn’t focus only on the good. It upsets me that some people still see Native people as being “savage,” or today’s stereotypes: lazy, stupid, greedy, or uncooperative.

I think we really need to teach more of the true history of our countries, the wonderful things that Native people did for the early settlers of the “new world”, and the great things they are doing today. In fact, I hate saying “they” like I am right now. They are us. We are all people. We each have different customs and cultures, but we are all the same inside. We are all capable, able, and deserve respect. Visiting this site helped me to learn more, and take one tiny step further in understanding our shared history. At the next site, I sure needed that.

The next place we visited had a stark history: General Custer’s last stand at the Battle of Little Big Horn. I’m not going to get into the history here, but the site treats both sides with respect. While this history was very memorable, even more memorable for me was the military graveyard. While there is a special site for some of the people who died during the historic battle, this graveyard is an active military graveyard for soldiers and their families. The place is beautiful, serene, sombre, and I took some time just wandering around, thinking. I thought about all the people who have fought and died for their countries, who are currently putting their lives at risk for the benefit of all of us. I thought about Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville, and all of the others who were unofficial soldiers, fighting for what they new was right, and ready to pay any price to get rid of evil. They suffered. They knew fear. Too many of them lost their lives. They showed amazing bravery, Gryffindor or not.

I then thought of my own life, and the lives of so many of us, comfortable, complacent. We in the HPA do show bravery, we do speak out and stand up. I don’t think our lives need to be on the line to make a difference, to help the world, but it still made me think. I’m not a risky person, so I asked myself, what would I be willing to do? Would I go with less? Less food, less clothes, less stuff if it helped? Would I be willing to get arrested for speaking out if it was important enough? I’m truthfully not sure. But I don’t think anyone ever is. You take it a moment at a time, you just keep going until you simply can’t anymore. You do what you can, when you can. I already try to live my life so that I don’t take more than I need, so that I choose things that will be sustainable for generations to come. I also take what small actions I can to speak up for those who need a voice. I’m always looking for more things I can do with what I have; with my abilities, with my low funds, and with the limited time I have. I guess that’s why I get so upset when people don’t do very simple things, such as voting, recycling, and minimizing waste. I do sometimes ask myself, what would Dumbledore do? or Harry? Or the other important people in my life and in history? So I ask you to stop and think: What would you do? How much are you willing to give? to sacrifice to something you truly believe in? What DO you truly believe in? Next blog, I visit what matters to me most.