CWRT-- Part 11: One Speaker on Confederate Monuments

Ron Lee, associate professor of political science at Rockford University spoke at the RRVCWRT in early November on the controversy surrounding the removal of Confederate monuments to the Civil War.

"The argument over these  monuments is part of a larger debate about how we want to remember our past," says Lee.  Both sides have staked out extreme opposing positions and seem unwilling to admit that their opponents have something to contribute to a fuller understanding of America's past."

He describes these positions as  represented by  the "1619 Project," which was produced by writers at the New York Times, and the 1776 Commission, an advisory committee appointed by then-president Trump in response to the "1619 Project."

According to Lee, the "1619 Project," sees American history mostly as a story of racism and oppression, whereas the 1776 Commission wants to promote "patriotic education" but dos so at the expense of "acknowledging significant political, social and economic injustices of the past in its insistence on the uniqueness of our founding in 1776 on principles of equality and liberty."

--Old Secesh

So, Who Really Won?

From the April 22, 2011, North Jersey.com by Steve Janoski.

Back then, a youngster visited a Civil War battlefield in the south and asked the lady behind the desk who won the battle.  "Oh, we did," was the answer.  She didn't say "the South and she didn't say "The Confederacy."

Bill Maher on "Real Time" said that nobody in California thinks about the Civil War, likewise most people in New York or New Jersey.

But, oh do the folks in the former Confederate states.  Just look at the two organizations made up of former soldiers of the two sides.  The Sons of Confederate Veterans boasts some 30,000 members.  Their counterpart, the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War just 6,000.  When it comes to re-enactments, often those portraying Confederates have to don Union uniforms to equal out the sides.

Let's face it, the Civil War Sesquicentennial is definitely being observed more in the South than the North even with constant irritation from the NAACP who try to put the whole war as one to keep or free slaves.

And, the South is really the South of 1861.  Texas has a huge Hispanic population and there are sure a lot of Cubans in Florida, not to mention retired Northerners. In Northern Virginia, many of the former battlefields are covered with subdivisions and shopping centers.

Hey, look at the 200 electoral map of the United States and it is almost identical to a map of the United States after secession.

And then, there are still racial tensions.

Some Things Don't Change, Or Do They?  --Old Secesh