Slate Daily Feed What Next | What Kids Aren't Learning About US History
Dec 1, 2025
Clint Smith, a staff writer at The Atlantic and author of the bestselling 'How the Word Is Passed,' discusses the challenges of teaching U.S. history, particularly its uncomfortable truths about slavery and genocide. He emphasizes that excluding these topics distorts our understanding of the present. Clint reflects on his teaching experiences and compares American memory practices to Germany’s Stolpersteine memorials. He argues that confronting difficult histories can empower students to envision a more just future.
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History Turns Fog Into A Stone
- Clint Smith compares vague historical knowledge to walking through fog and studying history to holding a heavy stone.
- Learning difficult history clarifies where you are and lets you carry that understanding forward.
Show Up Where History Is Banned
- Clint Smith deliberately visited Southern schools where books like his were being banned to speak directly to students.
- He encourages showing up in classrooms so teachers and students can confront censored history safely.
Cemetery Rituals Preserve False Stories
- Clint Smith describes visiting a Confederate cemetery where family rituals pass down a distorted history.
- He shows how those stories preserve loyalty to a false narrative across generations.
