LET'S NOT HONOR VILLAINS!: WASHINGTON, JEFFERSON, GENGHIS KHAN...

On all continents, there are iconic villains and antiheroes, and none of them should be revered, neither in Asia nor in the Americas. Let’s start with Asia, which, like Europe, has a very rich history, including large-scale human rights violating ogres who are still glorified today.

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To keep it brief, we will only comment on the most relevant ones:

MAO TSE TUNG

The Great Helmsman is revered in the People’s Republic of China, to the point that his enormous portrait presides over Tiananmen Square, the main square of this great country, despite being one of the most damaging dictators in history, causing the death of between 40 and 80 million innocent victims and suffering to many millions more. Read more at…

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GENGHIS KHAN

This monster is the great national hero of Mongolia, omnipresent in statues, banknotes, and images. They have even named the capital’s international airport after him, despite him being one of history’s greatest butchers. The reason is that he exterminated 40 million people, which represented, for example, 70% of China’s population and 75% of Iran’s. But, in addition, he was extremely cruel, employing very painful methods of killing, such as impalement, crushing, boiling alive, etc.

Read LET US LIVE WITHOUT HARM! Let us fight for human rights

TAMERLANE

The Sword of Islam is the national hero of Uzbekistan and is also present in statues and banknotes of that country, despite being another perverse figure similar to Genghis Khan. Because he committed great genocides of millions or even tens of millions of innocent victims and applied great cruelty to those who resisted his conquests.

Read LET’S NOT HARM ANYONE!

SULEIMAN THE MAGNIFICENT

This sultan of the Ottoman Empire did good and just things, but at the same time he was the typical conqueror who spread panic and caused many deaths and suffering. In addition, he plundered, enslaved, had sex slaves, and ordered the assassination of his best friend and his son.

Read LIVING WITHOUT HARM: Let us oppose imperialism, militarism, and the cult of violence

He was a bully who tried to intimidate the Viennese, assuring them that if they did not surrender, he would burn the city and kill both young and old.

There are quite a few other Asian iconic villains, but to avoid extending ourselves too much, let’s cross the Pacific to the Americas.

MANUEL HIDALGO

The so-called Father of the Nation of Mexico allowed his troops to massacre innocents, loot, rape, and torture.

Read HOW TO LIVE WITHOUT HARM? Let us be good people

And next, 3 antiheroes who were not strictly villains, as they did many good things, but also committed human rights violations, and therefore do not deserve any homage.

THOMAS JEFFERSON

The third president of the United States was a lover of the Enlightenment ideals of liberty, human rights, and democracy, thus bearing a certain resemblance to Frederick the Great of Prussia and Catherine the Great of Russia, of whom he was more or less a contemporary.

Read LET’S NOT HONOR VILLAINS!: Bismarck, Frederick the Great, Adenauer

Read LET’S NOT HONOR VILLAINS!: Peter the Great of Russia, Catherine the Great…

As happened to them, he contributed significant improvements to society, such as the drafting of the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes human rights, like life and liberty.

And like them, the problem was that he did not apply those beautiful ideals he preached when they were contrary to his selfish interests. For this reason, he owned more than 600 slaves, whom he also ordered to be mistreated with whippings when they were not productive enough, even children as young as 12. The level of aggression was such that it took them several days to recover.

GEORGE WASHINGTON

He was similar to Jefferson. He had the most plantations and slaves in Virginia. He initially held the typical conservative mindset of a slave-owning landowner of his time, but later became influenced by the liberal ideals of his revolutionary companions. And he helped implement them in part during the independence process and when he was president.

However, his great “sin” was that he did not apply these ideals when they were contrary to his self-serving conveniences, maintaining hundreds of slaves on his plantations. And although he claimed to detest slavery, he gave instructions to overseers to punish with whippings those who did not meet production targets.

Read FOR A WORLD WITHOUT HARM: Let’s rebel against slavery, including disguised forms

Therefore, it is not fair to name a state and the capital of the United States after this oppressor of people. Undoubtedly, conservative American nationalists will want to cling to the national narrative, but to achieve a harmless world, justice must always be above national narratives.

Read THE ART OF LIVING WITHOUT HARM: Let’s question nationalist narratives that cause conflicts

Read THE REVOLUTION OF LIVING WITHOUT HARM:: Let’s undo the identity indoctrination that alienates us from others

It is better to pay homage to decent people, such as the abolitionists or the signers of the Seneca Falls feminist declaration.

SIMÓN BOLÍVAR

This liberator, who achieved the independence of several Latin American countries from the Spanish yoke, such as Colombia and Venezuela, bore a certain resemblance to the two previous leaders. He was a lover of liberty and the enlightened ideas of the French Revolution. He freed slaves and participated in the drafting of the Constitution of Gran Colombia, with a much more democratic and liberal system than that existing under the Spanish Empire.

However, he massacred all Spanish civilians he could who did not side with him, even if they were innocent. Therefore, although he is not a typical textbook villain, he does not deserve to be glorified either.

And there are quite a few other iconic villains. Let us not elevate any of them to the category of a lantern to light our way, because if we do, we will stumble. Let us give them a fair trial and admire those who have fought for a more just and happy world.

Read: LET US NOT HONOUR VILLAINS!, but rather those who have fought for a better world

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