After many years of distinguished service, James Valentine is leaving the ABC for health reasons. James published an article in 2015 which was a touchstone in the early days of our sister site, Honest History. Our summary, including a link to James' article, is republished below. (Original.)
When The Honest History Book was published in 2017 it included a quote from James' article. James interviewed David Stephens before the book launch and kindly described the book as not only a collection of essays but also a manifesto.
Defending Country and Honest History wish James all the very best.
‘Gallipoli: the story we all grew up with‘, Age, 26 April 2015
(Story has different titles in other Fairfax outlets.)
We are highlighting this one because of its remarkable resonance with the ideas that have been put forward on the Honest History site for the last 18 months. Essentially, it is about the way private family remembrance has been swamped.
Every media outlet, every gallery, every concert, every surf lifesaving club, every park, every council, every artist, every institution is marking this centenary. Individually, they probably all should. Collectively, it’s smothering me and any actual emotion I might feel.
I’m being told repeatedly what I should feel. Exactly how solemn I should be, which parts of the story I should mark and what lesson I should draw from them, how our nation was forged on these distant sands, what it meant for us all back home and on and again and over and again.
The fatigue may not be caused necessarily by this year. For 20 years we’ve been turning up the commemorative intensity … It is now blasphemous to critique Gallipoli. There is only the one view, the bowed head, the remembrance of sacrifice, the formation of nation. Important, of course. Tragic, beyond understanding. But how much does this constant emphasis on Gallipoli overshadow everything else we did, that made us who we are? … It’s treason to suggest such things, because we can no longer question Gallipoli without implying a rejection of our Diggers, both then and now.
Picture credit: ABC Radio Sydney (Declan Bowring)
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