Lincoln, Hollywood, and an Opportunity for Historians- Excerpt

Historians will disagree over whether this was Lincoln indeed. My friend and colleague Lerone Bennett will wonder what happened to the evidence that Lincoln never believed in racial equality. David Blight will no doubt scratch his head over the absence of Frederick Douglass. Others will question the accuracy of this Lincoln's approach to the presidency and presidential power, or the portrayal of family dynamics in the White House; or the implications of a film about emancipation that elides the agency of slaves and ex-slaves (except for the role of black soldiers). Others will note that Spielberg seems to get the importance of manhood, but doesn't really know how to use gender as a category of political analysis. This is what a film like this should do: stimulate discussion about history. I encourage colleagues to engage the film in the public realm—in newspapers and blogs and on the radio—in language that is accessible, and in a voice that speaks especially to people who might not readily accept concepts and perspectives taken for granted within the academy.

Schuyler Colfax, then the speaker of the House of Representatives, reminds us that emancipation was not just another issue for legislation and debate: "This isn't usual. This is history." Well, we're historians. Let's get out there and talk about history. Steven Spielberg, who is a lot better than we are at introducing big issues into public discussion, has started the debate. Let us continue the conversation.