Don't Be *THAT* Reenactor....

[ViperChief]

All, 

Amidst the historical & political turmoil over the last few years, there seems to be a trend emerging among living historians and reenactors- a disturbing and dangerous one. What I refer to is *THAT* reenactor who disrespects the history, and more so who disgraces the men and women who did extraordinary things that deserve to be memorialized and honored regardless of uniform or flag. These types will inject child-like emotion or modern politics into history, often from no real world perspective or academic qualifications at all. They'll generally subscribe to iconoclastic ideologies or revisionist histories and make unfounded generalizations like "all Germans soldiers were mass murders" or "All Confederate soldiers wanted to preserve slavery", and so on .The "video game stereotypes" from Call of Duty's early days are central to their personality, and they often take things a bit too far forgetting that they were never *actually* there, recalling reenactments like they were real battles. Most painfully, I have seen several such occasions where these types will disrespect, even berate, a veteran to their face...one such instance was toward a Wehrmacht veteran, until an American Infantry veteran came along and put the kid in his place.

 

Being a living historian, at least for many of us, is far more than a "hobby" or a drain on our wallet and wife's mood; It is a sacred duty. For me, it is a way to commune with those in my bloodline who gave so much, and in many cases paid the ultimate sacrifice. Whether that be my Greatx6 Grandfather who crossed the Delaware with Washington, my Greatx3 Grandfather who was wounded at Chancellorsville as a Confederate soldier, my Great Uncle who was wounded and captured at Stalingrad with the Wehrmacht, or my own Grandfathers at The Siegfried Line and Iwo Jima- they, as common soldiers in the profession of arms, are a part of history and deserve to be portrayed.

 

It is our role as living historians to bring to life many who never will have the chance to live again for the public, not just for illustrative purposes but so that we might hope the unlikelihood of humanity learning from our history may one day become a reality. It is to memorialize those who gave their all for the right, for their nation, or for their beliefs, from the very beginning onto our war in the GWOT. So, while the divisive forces at be will try to divide historians and peoples with emotion or revisionisms, let us resolve to remain objective and honorable in our quests to preserve yesterdays. 

 

Thanks for listening...

 

-Chief