Dear Ms. Amelia Amedela Amemate a.k.a Dela Goldheart,
REGARDING THE PRACTICE OF CONTEXTOMY
Have you heard of the word “Contextomy” before? It was coined by the historian Milton Mayer in 1966 to describe the misquoting of the Talmud for propaganda purposes by the Nazi, Julius Streicher, editor of the Nazi paper Der Stürmer . This was in Germany just before WW II broke out.
Mr. Streicher was virulently anti-Semitic and his newspaper carried horrible stories and cartoons about Jews that led to their dehumanization and made it easy for Hitler to push through “The Final Solution”.
“Contextomy” is defined as “the selective excerpting of words from their original linguistic context in a way that distorts the source’s intended meaning.” Some call this practice “quoting out of context”.
Like Wikipedia says, “The problem here is not the removal of a quote from its original context per se (as all quotes are), but to the quoter’s decision to exclude from the excerpt certain nearby phrases or sentences (which become “context” by virtue of the exclusion) that serve to clarify the intentions behind the selected words.”
Recently, you took the words of a man you sparred with on social media back in February, omitted a few words, placed a few ellipses here and there, and hey, that man now sounded like a raging misogynist and none of your listeners was any wiser.
In his excellent book ”They Thought They Were Free – The Germans, 1933-45”, Mr. Mayer explores the many reasons a lot of Germans went along with the atrocities of the Nazis. If a lot of Germans believed the rather erroneous and inflammatory articles published in “The Sturmer”, and those articles helped dehumanize the Jews, then that tells you how potent the practice of contextomy can be.
That is why what you did is not only dishonest, fraudulent and low; it is also very dangerous. It is dangerous because you are using lies to sway public opinion about another human being, to his detriment. On a larger scale, that is what the Nazi, Julius Streicher did.
Herr Streicher also had a motto: “Something always sticks”. Even if his false claims were later debunked, something demeaning always stuck to the Jews’ reputation. Even if all attempts to show that you “contextomized” your opponent’s words, a sheen of misogyny now hangs over him!
A lot of the atrocities we see in this world start when dishonest men and women misrepresent the words of others, to fit an ominous agenda. Like the Nazis did and like the Boers did in South Africa as they misquoted parts of the Book of Genesis to buttress apartheid.
You may be doing this to further the noble cause of feminism but in so doing you actually besmirch the commendable attempts of all who try to do it the right way. Or maybe, you are trying to get back at your antagonist for his unkind words back in February. Well, at least he was upfront and honest while you are being backhanded and dishonest.
I have taken your words from that day some months back – the words that started it all. I have treated the words like you treated his words. See how much the meaning is altered! Do you now appreciate the severity of your dishonesty?
If you aim to make a mark on humanity, learn qualities that will carry you through this journey called life. Dishonesty is definitely not one of them. Courage is one very important quality. Now, dig into yourself, find some courage and let that propel you to apologize to everyone who saw those altered words during your presentation. You owe them the truth. You also owe the man whose words you altered an apology but for that, I am not going to hold my breath.
And while you are at it, find another nickname. If the soul of us humans sits in our hearts, I cannot imagine a dishonest heart containing any gold.
Sincerely,
Nana Dadzie Ghansah MD
PS: Julius Streicher was tried and found guilty of “incitement of active persecution of Jews” during the Nuremberg Trials and hung on October 16, 1946.