Why did the people/institutions/nations in this article use the past in the way that they did?

The Past is New(s)
Purpose: To highlight the many ways that the past is important in the present.
Goals:

To develop critical thinking about media and government portrayals of the past
To show how the past is used today by governments, schools, cultural groups, and other institutions (both for better and for worse) for political reasons

Description:
Find a newspaper article, blog post (reputable sources only!), or other news source from the last four years that gives an example of how the past is being used, manipulated, highlighted, embraced, or destroyed by a government, school, or other cultural institution. This assignment is left deliberately broad because you should think widely about how the past is used in the present. There are lots of different news items you can consider, such as the destruction of archaeological sites (as long as there is a political element); discussions of how history should be taught in the schools; the use of symbols from the past by modern-day leaders, governments, or celebrities; or controversies over the excavation or restoration of particular archaeological sites. If you are not certain whether the news item you’ve chosen fits this assignment, please send me a quick e-mail to ask.
Write no more than one single-spaced page (around 600 words) reflecting on the article. Do not just summarize the article (although you should include a couple of sentences of summary). Instead, discuss why this particular example of the political use of the past is important. Again, this assignment is left broad so you have a wide variety of options to choose from. However, if you’re short on ideas, you can consider answering one or more of the following questions:

Why did the people/institutions/nations in this article use the past in the way that they did? (That is, what modern political problem or controversy is being played out using information, symbols, or sites from the past?)
Why is the political problem or controversy discussed in the article important to people today, and what is the importance of the past in understanding that problem?
How do you personally feel about the way the past is used or misused by the people or institutions discussed in the article?
Is the information, symbols, or sites from the past actually relevant to the current political situation discussed in the article? Why or why not?