Remember my master class with Colum McCann? Well, he talked about the importance of research to your writing. I was happy for that because there’s nothing I love more than the ins and outs of the labyrinth of information that can bring you to the most unexpected places.
Then I hit the jackpot.
I’m working on this chapter in my book where I’m in 5th grade at Solomon Shecter and Danny Goldhagen and I are having a conversation about the nature of evil in the world.
Years later, at a reunion of sorts, the now famous Daniel Jonah Goldhagen told me he was “taking over the family business.” Picturing his father Erich, the Holocaust survivor and historian, I needed no further explanation.
But in writing this chapter in my book I wanted to go deeper, so I researched the father Erich and discovered a Harvard Crimson article from Oct. 6, 1983 stating:
Lecturer in Jewish Studies Erich Goldhagen’s course, “Explaining the Holocaust and the Phenomenon of Genocide,” was taken out of the Core because “it did not meet the specific guidelines of a Core course,” Professor James Q. Wilson, chairman of the committee which recommended the move, said yesterday. “While the course was well taught and a very popular course on the Holocaust, it did not concentrate enough on social theory,” Wilson said.
“It was the consensus of the committee that the course dealt too much with specific and incidental facts and not an approach to thinking,” said Brian R. Melendez ’86, a student member on the Core Committee on Social Analysis and Moral Reasoning.
Talk about irony! Jame Q. Wilson, whose daily bread and butter came from his theory of Broken Windows didn’t think that learning about Kristillnacht: the infamous night of broken windows was relevant to Social Analysis and Moral Reasoning?
Exploring Kristillnacht as a defining event in the tolerance of dehumanization and cruelty that allowed The Holocaust to happen; is standard bearing for the daily moral questioning that guides our actions.
Not only did Wilson’s Broken Window Theory lay the groundwork for the mass incarceration of young black men in the 1990’s, but it also helped dehumanize them. I’m not blaming Wilson for the epidemic of sanctioned killing of black men; all I’m saying is that the depth of understanding we reach when asking the “How could this happen” questions integral to Holocaust studies demand of us a social responsibility that goes way beyond a theory and a pile of broken glass.
Core curriculum? Seriously?
—
The Good Men Project is different from most media companies. We are a “participatory media company”—which means we don’t just have content you read and share and comment on but it means we have multiple ways you can actively be a part of the conversation. As you become a deeper part of the conversation—The Conversation No One Else is Having—you will learn all of the ways we support our Writers’ Community—community FB groups, weekly conference calls, classes in writing, editing platform building and How to Create Social Change.
◊♦◊
Here are more ways to become a part of The Good Men Project community:
Request to join our private Facebook Group for Writers—it’s like our virtual newsroom where you connect with editors and other writers about issues and ideas.
Click here to become a Premium Member of The Good Men Project Community. Have access to these benefits:
- Get access to an exclusive “Members Only” Group on Facebook
- Join our Social Interest Groups—weekly calls about topics of interest in today’s world
- View the website with no ads
- Get free access to classes, workshops, and exclusive events
- Be invited to an exclusive weekly “Call with the Publisher” with other Premium Members
- Commenting badge.
Are you stuck on what to write? Sign up for our Writing Prompts emails, you’ll get ideas directly from our editors every Monday and Thursday. If you already have a final draft, then click below to send your post through our submission system.
If you are already working with an editor at GMP, please be sure to name that person. If you are not currently working with a GMP editor, one will be assigned to you.
◊♦◊
Are you a first-time contributor to The Good Men Project? Submit here:
◊♦◊
Have you contributed before and have a Submittable account? Use our Quick Submit link here:
◊♦◊
Do you have previously published work that you would like to syndicate on The Good Men Project? Click here:
Join our exclusive weekly “Call with the Publisher” — where community members are encouraged to discuss the issues of the week, get story ideas, meet other members and get known for their ideas? To get the call-in information, either join as a member or wait until you get a post published with us. Here are some examples of what we talk about on the calls.
Want to learn practical skills about how to be a better Writer, Editor or Platform Builder? Want to be a Rising Star in Media? Want to learn how to Create Social Change? We have classes in all of those areas.
While you’re at it, get connected with our social media:
- To join our Facebook Page, go here.
- To sign up for our email newsletter, go here.
- To follow The Good Men Project on Twitter, go here.
◊♦◊
However, you engage with The Good Men Project—you can help lead this conversation about the changing roles of men in the 21st century. Join us!
◊♦◊
We have pioneered the largest worldwide conversation about what it means to be a good man in the 21st century. Your support of our work is inspiring and invaluable.
The Good Men Project is an Amazon.com affiliate. If you shop via THIS LINK, we will get a small commission and you will be supporting our Mission while still getting the quality products you would have purchased, anyway! Thank you for your continued support!
—
Originally published on Bulletproof Blog
—