History is the cataloging of major events and the human action which brought them to fruition. History unfolds for us and the world every day.
The war in Ukraine has led over 1 million of its citizens to flee — largely women and children. The men of Ukraine — sons, grandsons, brothers, husbands, uncles, fathers, grandfathers and boyfriends — have valiantly stayed behind to fight the Russian invasion, as orphanages, hospitals, daycare centers, apartment complexes, homes and numerous other buildings are being destroyed by Russian aggression.
Heroically, most of Ukraine’s 41 million-plus population has chosen to remain, putting their lives at risk to defend their property — and all Ukrainians’ right to self-determination.
Currently, a 40-mile caravan of highly trained Russian soldiers advances deep into Ukraine armed with tanks, missiles, grenade launchers and other types of killing machines, the likes of which Europe has never seen.
Led by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the 21st century’s voice of liberty, the Ukrainian people cry for free countries of the world to assist them in battling tyranny and the despotic actions of Russian leader Vladimir Putin. It is extremely important to reflect on history for inspiration and guidance as we seek to assist the brave people of Ukraine and those noble Russians opposing Putin’s war from within the borders of Russia.
Ukraine does not need summer soldiers and sunshine patriots
In December 1776, General George Washington’s troops were regrouping at McKonkey’s Ferry on the Delaware River across from Trenton, New Jersey, after suffering a devastating defeat to the far-superior British Army. Between September and December, more than 11,000 volunteer American soldiers — convinced the war was lost — abandoned the cause and returned to their families. General Washington could see the destiny of the revolution if the rest of his men returned home when their enlistments expired at the end of the year. He knew that without an upsurge in morale — and a significant victory — the American rebellion would come to a swift and demeaning end. As Washington’s troops had retreated, Thomas Paine rose to the challenge of literary warfare composing his inspiring treatise, The American Crisis, which begins: “THESE are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the Sunshine Patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered …”
First published in the Pennsylvania Journal in December 1776, The American Crisis salvaged the revolution. General Washington motivated his beleaguered troops with Paine’s words to muster their remaining courage, win the next two battles and turn the tide of the American Revolution. Some historians believe it to be the third most important American document ever written behind the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, rallying a fledgling nation to defeat the greatest superpower of the time.
The aforementioned documents created the greatest country in history, despite its imperfections. Fortunately, the self-correcting mechanism afforded by the Constitution has allowed the United States to continuously evolve and grow to be the light of liberty and the champion of economic and political freedom around the world.
‘And then they came for me’
In the 1930s, Protestant minister Martin Niemoller was an early supporter of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party in his homeland of Germany. As Hitler’s evil intentions came to light, Niemoller began to change his views on Hitler and the Nazi party.
He organized a group of protestant ministers in opposition to Hitler and the coming atrocities they foresaw. His leadership of the opposition to the Nazification of the German Protestant Church led to his seven-year imprisonment. He survived the notorious Dachau prison and was later liberated by American troops before the Third Reich’s orders to execute remaining prisoners could be carried out. Niemoller contributed greatly to society with his writings in the years after his liberation, including his moving poem, They Came for Me.
Niemoller would spend much of the remaining years of his life lamenting his prior anti-Semitism and the fact he had not done more, in a time of great crisis in the world. And most regrettable, he was not there for German Jews, early in Hitler’s rise to power.
We must never produce educated Eichmann’s
Haim Ginott was an Israeli child psychologist. In his best-selling book Teacher and Child, he speaks to the power and responsibility all educators have. Toward the end of the book, he publishes a letter from a Holocaust survivor entitled: So I am Suspicious of Education. The letter speaks to the power and potential abuse of education and our need to produce highly capable students who also have a conscience and are humane. For without a sense of humanity, the author asserts educated individuals can be conditioned to do evil, imploring a teacher’s efforts “must never produce learned monsters, skilled psychopaths or educated Eichmanns” (a reference to the notorious Nazi war criminal).
For education and schools to help develop individuals to create a better, more prosperous world, they must also help instill well-formed principles and shared values. Putin is the educated Eichmann of today. He must be stopped and held accountable.
‘If not us, who? And if not now, when?’
We must encourage the brave people of Ukraine and their heroic leader that they can defeat tyranny, despite daunting odds. We must learn from history and loudly, unambiguously, and forcefully speak up and act for the Ukrainians, as we champion freedom, education, and our values, and celebrate the differences that make us unique.
As the world supports Ukrainians, let the words from President Ronald Wilson Reagan’s 1985 inaugural address guide us. In that address, Reagan — (an actor like Zelensky) — challenged the world to stand up to Soviet aggression and tyranny: “If not us, who? And if not now, when?”
About the author:
Dr. Timothy G. Nash is the director of the McNair Center for the Advancement of Free Enterprise and Entrepreneurship at Northwood University.