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Cobblestone
Apr2013
Battle Over History.
By Arnesen, Eric
The article presents information about the controversy which was sparked by the exhibit at Washington, D.C.'s Smithsonian's National Air
and Space Museum of the Enola Gay, the B-29 bomber airplane that dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan during World
War II in 1945.
Table of Content
FAST FACT
The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum was not prepared for the firestorm it sparked. For years, the Enola Gay had been
sitting in storage. The Enola Gay is the four-engine B-29 bomber that dropped the first atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima.
In the mid-1990s, the museum decided to put the plane on display for the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II (1939-1945). But
the museum's interpretation of the bombing of Japan ignited a fierce and bitter debate. How the past is remembered -- by those who
lived it and those who study it -- turned into a very public political battle.
Over the decades since 1945, some scholars had challenged the governments official explanation for how and why the bomb was used.
The museum curators relied on this revisionist history to raise critical questions about the decision to drop the atomic bomb. Perhaps the
bomb had not been necessary for ending the war without a land invasion of Japan. Perhaps a land invasion would have been much less
costly in terms of human lives than the government had claimed. Perhaps the bomb had been used to show off American power and
intimidate the Communist Soviet Union. Perhaps the decision to use the bomb had been not only misguided but morally wrong. Aspects
of these revisionist arguments found their way into the exhibit's initial script.
When word of the script's contents became known, veterans' groups representing men who had fought in the war responded angrily. The
bomb had been necessary for ending the conflict quickly, they insisted. It prevented a land invasion of Japan that had been predicted to
take a staggering number of American lives. The Soviet Union was a U.S. ally who had been expected to join in the fight against Japan.
And intense fighting and desperate battles had taken place on the Pacific front for more than three years prior to the bomb being
dropped. Painting the Americans as the villains and the Japanese merely as the victims created a false picture of the war, the veterans
pointed out.
Military groups, such as the Air Force Association and the American Legion, publicly opposed what they saw as the pro-Japanese tone of
the exhibit. Members of Congress denounced the museum for its "anti-American" slant and failure to portray American soldiers proudly.
Edward J. Drea, chief of research and analysis at the Army's Center for Military History, reviewed the museum's exhibit text in the spring
of 1994. In an eight-page memo, he wrote, "Is the point of showing the A-bombed Japanese to elicit sympathy for victims? If so, perhaps
photos of victims of Japanese aggression and atrocities … would be useful… to show why the war came to an atomic conclusion." He
observed that the portrayal of "the Japanese as perpetrators… is absent from most of the exhibit. This leaves it unbalanced. Even the
Japanese emperor said publicly that the atomic bomb was probably unavoidable."
Yet, when the museum staff tried to revise the exhibit, complaints came in from the other side. The Physicians for Social Responsibility
condemned the "celebratory tone" of the new version. It wanted the dangers of nuclear weapons to be emphasized. "The Enola Gay not
only helped end the war in Japan but also unleashed a weapon whose destructiveness, power, and after-effects have been widely
condemned," it pointed out. The Organization of American Historians cautioned about the "historical cleansing" of information. It noted
that some U.S. statesmen and scientists in the 1940s had voiced reservations about dropping the bomb. The revised exhibit did not
mention those leaders or their concerns.
Museum officials tried to rewrite the script a number of times to address the various points. But those efforts merely brought new
criticism. After nearly a year of discussions, the Smithsonian cancelled the proposed exhibit. But the controversy had made one thing
clear: History -- the interpretation and understanding of the past -- matters.
The issues raised by the debate over the Enola Gay exhibit were not new. Even the scientists who helped develop the atomic bomb were
divided over the meaning of what they were doing. They were excited by their discoveries, but they were worried that their work was
resulting in a devastating weapon of war. Once the atomic bomb was proven scientifically possible to build, many scientists cautioned
against actually using it. The topic remains unresolved, as can be seen by the museum curators, veterans, political leaders, and
historians who publicly debated their different points of view 50 years later.
And what of the Enola Gay? The National Air and Space Museum displayed several major components from the plane in June 1995 but
with little commentary. It became one of the most popular special exhibits at the museum, drawing more than 1 million visitors in the
first year. Then, in 2003, the completely renovated Enola Gay was given a permanent home at the museum's new annex in Virginia.
Protestors threw a can of red paint at the plane. What we remember and understand about the atomic bomb remains controversial.
Revisionist means reconsidering or modifying accepted or long-standing theories or ideas.
Perpetrators are those who are responsible for some thing or some action.
Both sides make worthy points.
FAST FACT
THE PILOT OF ENOLA GAY, COLONEL PAUL W. TIBBETS, JR., NAMED THE BOMBER AFTER HIS MOTHER.
More than 400,000 Americans died in World War II. To the military, use of the atomic bomb meant that American lives were saved.
The Enola Gay can be seen at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.
Colonel Paul W. Tibbets, Jr., waves from the cockpit of the Enola Gay before takeoff on August 6, 194S. The plane carried the first atomic
bomb dropped on Hiroshima japan.
The destructive power of the bomb was complete. The city of Hiroshima became a wasteland.
~~~~~~~~
By Eric Arnesen
http://www.worldbookonline.com/advanced/magazine?id=/wb/EBSCOArticle?db=wph&ui=87012087&mt=ar257760
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World Book Advanced
6/13/14 1:39 PM
Eric Arnesen is a professor of history at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C, and is a member of COBBLESTONE'S
advisory board.
Copyright of Cobblestone is the property of Carus Publishing Company and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or
posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for
individual use.
Source: Cobblestone, Arnesen, Eric, Apr2013, Vol. 34 Issue 4, p2, 3p
Item: 87012087
How to cite this article. To cite this article in a bibliography or footnote or to learn about other citation formats, read our Help page
about citations, or ask your teacher or librarian for help.
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