As a kid in the ’70s and ’80s, I grew up with heroes. Luke Skywalker, Superman, G.I. Joe, He-Man, Batman. Good and evil were simple. The hero always saved the day.
I carried that belief into adulthood, thinking someone would show up when things went bad. Maybe it was my U.S. education. Maybe it was growing up in a good family. But I genuinely believed someone, somewhere, would stop injustice when it mattered most.
Of course, that’s not how the world works.
In school, they taught me Christopher Columbus “discovered” America. They didn’t say Cristóbal Colón colonized it in the name of the Spanish monarchy. From the beginning, we’re fed oversimplified stories that hide brutal truths.
History is messy and fascinating. The deeper I dig, especially into war and conflict, the more I realize how much we’ve been lied to. Governments lie. Media distorts. Institutions stall. And worse, many people are still living inside those lies.
