stolen history

History as taught is what it always has been, propaganda for those, whoever they may be, who administer the old colonial system.--C.L.R. James (The Black Jacobins, 408)

On Saturday, I was reminded of James's words while reading Eliane Karp-Toledo's elegant article, "The Lost Treasure of Machu Picchu." Karp-Toledo analyzed the arrogance of American academics, the handmaidens of the United States' two-century campaign of imperialism toward the people of Central and South America. With the 1823 proclamation of the Monroe Doctrine, the U.S. began to meddle in the affairs of its Southern neighbors. The U.S. government saw the Caribbean as its private sea and South America as its private continent. Since the beginning of the nineteenth century, the U.S. government has worked to destabilize sovereign nation states and torture people who bravely resisted. The U.S. government worked to exploit the land and people to its south. In addition to a campaign of destablization, torture, and exploitation, American agents stole the artifacts of the once great Incan civilization from the sovereign people of Peru.

In 1912, and then again in 1914-1915, Hiram Bingham III, a Yale University professor, sulked into Peru. He raided the ancient Peruvian city of Machu Picchu. In the name of knowledge he stole Peruvian artifacts. The artifacts now sit at Yale's Peabody Museum of Natural History. Yale refuses to return the artifacts unless,

Peru would promise to build a museum and research center in Cuzco, the city closest to Machu Picchu, where some of the collection would be displayed. Yale would act as adviser for the center, and would also be allowed to select which pieces would be released to the museum. Peru’s sovereign right to the entire collection is not acknowledged, and it is clear that Yale would keep a significant proportion of the materials. Peru would still not be allowed to conduct its own inventory. Only when a museum has been built to Yale’s specifications would even a portion of the materials return, allowing Peruvians to enjoy artifacts they have never seen.

History is a weapon the elite wield against the people they hope to control. Yale, one of the richest universities in America, wishes to deny Peruvians access to their own history on their own terms. Yale wishes to dictate how Peruvians access their own history. By dictating how Peruvians can access their history, Yale acts as an intellectual imperialist. In essence, Yale is placing the Peruvian people into the hierarchy of imperial history. Yale reminds Peruvians: you were once under the rule of the Inca elite, now you're under the rule of a university-educated Western elite. Benedict Anderson's words precisely capture Yale's message to the people of Peru: "Our very presence shows that you have always been, or have long become, incapable of either greatness or self-rule" (Imagined Communities, 181).

When we think about history and Yale's despicable behavior, we would do well to remember James's profoundly powerful words. Write to Yale's President Richard C. Levin. Demand that Yale return Peru's history to Peru. If our words do not persuade Levin of the justness of our demands, we will be forced to steal Peru's artifacts and return them to their rightful owners.

Thoughts of other bloggers:
"The thieves of Yale" [PREA Prez]
"Yale and Machu Picchu: the never-ending story" [Robert Goldwater Library blog]

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On an unrelated topic, I saw The Pakistani Spectator published an interview with StormWarning, author of, "StormWarning's Counterterrorism". It's nice to see this blogger receive some recognition for his insightful writing. StormWarning wrote thoughtful, honest responses to a plethora of uninteresting and uninspired questions. As evidence of a thoughtful, honest response to a boring question, feast your eyes on this:

Who are your top five favourite bloggers?

I don’t really play favorites. I do think that the smartest writer out there is Ortho from Baud[r]illard’s Bastard.

Head over to The Pakistani Spectator to read more of StormWarning's interview. After reading the interview travel to StormWarning's Blog.