Editor's Message

Marc Jason Gilbert

     The study of Genocide in World History continues apace, accompanied by discourse over the meaning of the term and best practices for classroom discussion. The World History Connected Forum for June 2017 addresses these subjects through the work of a team of scholars and resource specialists, supported by an annotated digital bibliography addressing the long-standing controversy over the relationship between genocide and the ideology and practice of settler societies.

     The Forum is accompanied by three articles that probe questions just as challenging: they engage in the study of past events that cast a long shadow upon the present. They explore late-Ming and Qing views of the South China Sea; examine the cognitive dissonance that emerged as African-American soldiers in Vietnam struggled to come to terms with the Vietnamese, who they saw as fellow people of color; and offer a dialog on the nature of fear and ambivalence in the ancient world. The eight book reviews in this issue have as global a reach as the Forum and Articles sections, addressing subjects ranging from the birth of the Anthropocene to dynasties and empires to slavery in West Africa and the Indian Ocean.

     This issue also includes a special feature in which Tom Laichas, the founding editor of World History Connected deconstructs The Disappearing Continent, the conservative National Association of Scholars (NAS) report on the College Board's updated AP European History course description. Laichas finds that the report "entirely ignores the actual experience of students in AP classrooms," and its "disappointing analysis" belies "its initial invocation that students should explore a wide range of historical explanations." Laichas concludes that "in this politically polarized age that remains a worthy goal," if here derailed by conservative polemic.

     WHC is always seeking Forum guest editors, authors, review articles and book reviewers, especially those with an interest in the Atlantic World, comics in world history, gender in the ancient world, Early modern Asia, and cultural/commercial contact which are potential foci of forthcoming issues.

     Especially welcome would be articles and reviews on the subject of the Philippines in World History, which is projected for the October or February issue.

Marc Jason Gilbert, Editor
Hawai'i Pacific University

Marc Jason Gilbert is Professor of History and National Endowment for the Humanities Endowed Chair in World History at Hawai'i Pacific University. He can be reached at mgilbert@hpu.edu.