Universal Peace and the Teaching of History (Document 2)

Document 2 titled 'Universal Peace and the Teaching of History', contains notes for a speech that was delivered by E.C. Warriner at the University of Michigan Summer School on August 7, 1914. One of the reasons that these notes are of interest concerns the fact that they were composed at the very beginning of the World War I. Even at the early date, Warriner notes the role of racism in the war: “Cause - Archduke Ferdinand” - this is a pretext - Real Cause Race Hatred.” Another reason why this document is of interest is because it illustrates the widespread concern amongst peace activists that education - specifically the teaching of history - emphasizes the stories of battles and military conquests at the expense of more positive stories involving “peace history”. In these notes, Warriner lists a number of positive stories of peace history that should be included in history courses. Among the stories listed are those concerning The Hague Peace Conferences, the peace philanthropy of Andrew Carnegie, and the establishment of the American School Peace League.