Volume 42, Number 2, September 2011 assp rt PThe Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations Review SHAFR in the World Inside... The Long Crisis in U.S. Diplomatic History A Roundtable Discussion on Michaela Hoenicke-Moore’s Know Your Enemy SHAFR Looks at the Arab Spring ...and much more! Passport The Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations Review Editorial Office: Mershon Center for International Security Studies 1501 Neil Avenue Columbus OH 43201 [email protected] 614-292-1681 (phone) 614-292-2407 (fax) Executive Director Peter L. Hahn, The Ohio State University Editor Mitchell Lerner, The Ohio State University-Newark Production Editor Julie Rojewski, Michigan State University Editorial Assistant David Hadley, The Ohio State University Editorial Advisory Board and Terms of Appointment Elizabeth Kelly Gray, Towson University (2009-2011) Robert Brigham, Vassar College (2010-2012) George White, Jr., York College/CUNY (2011-2013) Passport is published three times per year (April, September, January), by the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations, and is distributed to all members of the Society. Submissions should be sent to the attention of the editor, and are acceptable in all formats, although electronic copy by email to [email protected] is preferred. Submis- sions should follow the guidelines articulated in the Chicago Manual of Style. Manuscripts accepted for publication will be edited to conform to Passport style, space limitations, and other requirements. The author is responsible for accuracy and for obtaining all permissions necessary for publication. Manuscripts will not be returned. Interested advertisers can find relevant information on the web at: http://www.shafr.org/newsletter/passportrates.htm, or can contact the editor. The opinions expressed in Passport do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SHAFR or of The Ohio State University. The editors of Passport wish to acknowledge the generous support of The Ohio State University, The Ohio State University—Newark, and the Mershon Center for International Security Studies. © 2011 SHAFR Page 2 Passport September 2011 Passport The Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations Review Volume 42, Number 2, September 2011 In This Issue 4 SHAFR in the World Matthew Connelley, Robert J. McMahon, Katherine A.S. Sibley, Thomas Borstelmann, Nathan Citino, and Kristin Hoganson 17 SHAFR Looks at the Arab Spring James Goode, Weldon C. Matthews, Clea Bunch, and Paul Thomas Chamberlin 26 A Roundtable Discussion of Michaela Hoenicke-Moore’s Know Your Enemy: The American Debate on Nazism, 1933-1945 Gunter Bischof, Lloyd Ambrosius, Cora Sol Goldstein, Brian Etheridge, and Michaela Hoenicke-Moore 38 The Attack on Higher Education John T. McNay 42 Debating the Anglo-Celtic Divide Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones and Thomas A. Breslin 45 Bad Policies: Nigerians’ Perceptions of the United States S.U. Fwatshak 50 Kennedy Library Launches Digital Archives Erica Boudreau 52 The 2010 Report of the Advisory Committee on Historical Diplomatic Documentation 54 The Diplomatic Pouch 66 In Memoriam: Lawrence E. Gelfand (1926-2011) 67 The Last Word Mitchell Lerner Passport September 2011 Page 3 SHAFR in the World Matthew Connelly, Robert J. McMahon, Katherine A.S. Sibley, Thomas Borstelmann, Nathan Citino, and Kristin Hoganson Editor’s Note: Matthew Connelly’s were opting not to replace retiring The problem begins with defining piece, “SHAFR in the World,” was diplomatic historians. And when foreign relations as a small and originally delivered at the 2010 OAH there were important initiatives to shrinking sub-field of U.S. history. Conference in Washington, D.C. as internationalize U.S. history, such That definition never made sense part of a plenary session, “The United as those featured in the 1992 Journal intellectually (who were we relating of American History to, States and the World.” It appears here and at the 1997 after all, if not the rest of the La Pietra conference, diplomatic world?) and certainly not politically, in a slightly altered form. Dr. Connelly historians were not in the lead. In if we cared about recruiting graduate was the only panelist contacted by fact, aside from a few standouts students and communicating our Passport who agreed to participate in like Akira Iriye, they were largely research to colleagues. Why, after all, this roundtable. absent—absent from the pages of the would anyone want to join a group JAH and the AHR and absent from that insisted it was a persecuted SHAFR in the World national conference programs, to minority? the point that diplomatic historians To say that U.S. diplomatic Matthew Connelly began to organize protests and historians see themselves as a complain to the media. persecuted minority might seem I well remember one story that like an exaggeration. But consider hen I started graduate school eventually appeared in the Chronicle the results of a poll conducted by almost twenty years ago, it of Higher Education. I heard about H-Diplo in the period preceding the would have been hard to it because the reporter contacted 2009 annual conference. Diplomatic Wimagine that a plenary session on the chairman of my department historians were asked whether “The United States in the World” at the University of Michigan to SHAFR should change its name to could fill a ballroom at the annual ask why they had decided not reflect the fact that an increasing Organization of American Historians to hire a diplomatic historian. I number of its members work in conference. So many scholars are had to explain that the demise of transnational history. They rejected now pursuing international and diplomatic history in Ann Arbor had the idea by more than three to one, transnational approaches to the been greatly exaggerated, though I with one respondent explaining that, history of the United States that could not explain to my chair why if the NAACP kept its name, why the subject has actually become senior historians in the field did not shouldn’t SHAFR? fashionable. But for people like consider me one of their own. It is a curious comparison. me, training to become diplomatic Some diplomatic historians SHAFR’s membership is historians in the 1990s, working insisted that they were uniquely overwhelmingly white and male, outside the conventional frame concerned with power. I think that after all. The organization does of national history was not just a what they really meant was that not keep figures on minority choice. It seemed like the only way to they were the only ones who cared membership, but fewer than twenty survive. about presidential decision-making percent are women. When I asked The long crisis in U.S. diplomatic in war and diplomacy. They had a one former SHAFR president history began decades earlier, when point—one I have often repeated whether the lack of women and leading scholars called for a more to colleagues at Michigan and later minorities is a problem, he pointed international approach to the study at Columbia. After all, how many out that scholars of African- of American foreign relations. wars will this country have to American history are mainly African- There were compelling intellectual wage before some of our biggest American—as if SHAFR was a society arguments: Christopher Thorne, departments recognize that military for the history of white American Charles Maier, and Sally Marks and diplomatic history are worthy of men, not all of those concerned with pointed out that it was impossible attention? the history of the United States in the to understand the impact the United But it is not true that other fields world. States had in the world without of history ignore power. They study Many people are working within doing research abroad. They also the power of patriarchy, the power SHAFR to promote a more inclusive called for giving greater attention of racism, and all the relations of vision. They are not just trying to to “structures,” i.e., the underlying power that are enshrined in law and change the name; they are trying factors that can shape inter-state enforced in courts, expressed through to promote women to leadership relations. new technologies, manifested in the positions and offer students But these arguments were largely management of land and resources, financial support to encourage a ignored, as many U.S. diplomatic and so on. I would argue that more diverse membership. And historians continued to study U.S. identifying our field as uniquely SHAFR conferences and the pages foreign relations using only official concerned with power but powerless of Diplomatic History are featuring U.S. archives. When I went on the to influence our profession is not truly exciting and innovative multi- job market, leading departments only mistaken, it is self-defeating. archival international research on Page 4 Passport September 2011 many subjects besides war and would actually lead to compelling public health and epidemic disease, diplomacy. new work, work that would connect international sport and tourism, But to bring about fundamental different parts of the world while communications networks, change, we need to do more. As still attending to the context and multinational corporations, and long as U.S. diplomatic historians particularity of each place. But over consumer culture can connect global define themselves as a sub-field the last decade, historians have begun processes to local and even intimate of U.S. history, they will face the to meet this challenge: consider, for experiences, such as how we shop, thankless task of persuading other example, Margaret MacMillan on count calories, and use contraception. Americanists that foreign policy the diplomacy of Versailles, Erez These are not all new subjects, but is no less important than newer Manela on the international impact of this new generation brings to bear subjects that seem fresh and exciting, Wilson’s call for self-determination, multi-archival international research such as gender and sexuality, the Barbara Keys on national rivalries as well as a larger vision of how their environment and material culture, or and international sport, Jeremi Suri work can add up to a new history science and technology.