Letter: Teach facts of history

I've just read in today's Daily Herald about the Des Plaines school board candidates wanting to accurately teach history concerning Columbus Day. Do they want to teach facts or do they want to push a narrative? The Europeans who came to this country over the centuries and the people who are coming across our southern border today and in the recent past are doing so for the same reasons. They are looking for a better life, a new start in a land of opportunity.

While the Indigenous people won some battles, they ultimately lost the war to rule this land. History is full of winners and losers. Facts are facts and should be taught. A virtue-signalling narrative is one way to interpret those facts. There are other interpretations. We should give the students all of the facts and allow them to think for themselves and form their own opinions. A rigorous debate among the students should follow. I'm wondering though,if the school board would allow differing opinions, let alone a debate.

John Malec

Bensenville