Tearing Down History

Given the past weekend’s events in Charlottesville, I thought now would be an appropriate time to have a discussion about the debate over removing Confederate statuary. As this is a Blog (and more specifically my blog) it won’t be much of a discussion if you don’t comment or question so please express yourself. Sorry I’ve been away so long but life has gotten busy and “blogger” is a low priority on the list of hats that I wear. So to the seven of you (Hi Mom!) who have been waiting for my return let’s go.

Backseat Memories (Not those kind)

As a child, I remember peering out of the back seat window at the striking statue. With wings that reach up over 20 ft, the angel of Fame clutches to her breast a dying confederate soldier with one arm while the other hand holds a laurel crown of Victory which she is about to place on the fallen heroes head. This emotional work signals the entrance to the downtown area of Salisbury, North Carolina, birthplace of Food Lion, Cheerwine, and yours truly.

This statue, like most Confederate honoraries, wasn’t created and dedicated until the early 1900s, meaning almost half a century had passed since the beginning of the Civil War. The Lee statue in Charlottesville was placed in 1924 putting it 60 years after the conflict and the “Confederate flag” recently removed from the South Carolina state capitol didn’t go up until 1961.

Heritage Not Hate

To many these symbols are representations of the cruel institution of slavery and painful reminders of the segregation and disfranchisement that followed. Others see them as a point of pride in their heritage and symbolic of the resiliency of the Southern spirit. Where the NAACP and many white nationalist agree is that they are symbols of a white man’s America. This unexpected convergence in beliefs is why one group wants them taken down while the other fights to keep them.

I would argue that no other region of inhabitants of the U.S. have more pride of place than Southerners. Much of this regional pride stems from the feeling that they have been viewed as second-class or have been subjugated by an outside power. (Much as the Basque in Spain or the Scottish and Irish who make up a great portion of our lineage) These feelings were in fact the true cause of the Civil War, whether it be cloaked in the hazy arguments of the states’ rights or the more honest belief that slavery was necessary to preserve the Southern economy and culture.

Open to Interpretation

While the meaning and purpose of these symbols can, has, and will continue to be argued, I would like to point out one simple fact. They are symbols. Taking them down, just like putting them up, is symbolic and doesn’t truly create or destroy history. These actions are merely expressions of society and its beliefs at a particular time and place. When you look around the world you rarely find so much stonework dedicated to those who attempted a violent overthrow of the established and ultimately victorious government and although they may stoke pride in many white Southerners they serve as painful reminders to many of our black brethren.  

So, if these and other statues are removed who will then teach us about the past?  Why history teachers, of course.  And to the young lady that writes for the Alt-right online newspaper who suggested that Lee’s statue (and others like it) help African Americans remember their own past, I’m sure the disproportionate representation in prison population, disparity in test scores, and barriers to full participation in the economy will serve as gentle reminders.