TAKE THEM DOWN

August 25, 2017

The number of voices that assail us daily has increased exponentially over the years, so I dislike adding noise to the cacophony.  I write when I feel passionately about an issue.  I cannot be silent now.  The conflict between white supremacists, neo-nazis, alt-right and those who opposed them at Charlottesville exposed an ugly side of this country that cannot be ignored.

The white nationalists and their sympathizers flooded Charlottesville, Virginia for the purpose of holding a “Unite the Right” rally to protest the removal of a statue of Robert E. Lee.  Lee’s statue and the majority of others like it were erected during the Jim Crow era.  They were raised as an act of defiance.  Their originators wanted our government and African-Americans to know that they were in control.  They are offensive for this reason and they should go.

 

Think about it, where else do you see monuments to this extent dedicated to those who lost a war?  Eugene Robinson in his article, “To heal the nation, take down Confederate statues,” (http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/article/NE/20170824/LOCAL1/170829833) reminds us that Robert E. Lee wouldn’t have approved, “I think it wiser…not to keep open sores of war but to follow the examples of those nations who endeavored to obliterate the marks of civil strife, to commit to oblivion the feelings engendered.”

Mr. Robinson did well to remind us of Lee’s remarks.  President Trump said that the removal of these statues represent an attack on America’s “history and culture.”  No, it’s about not honoring those who fought an armed rebellion against our federal government and lost.  The Confederate States of America were dissolved in 1865, yet we still see Confederate flags.  Why?  There are those who won’t let go, who still resent losing the war.  For these people the monuments are a daily reminder of their loss.  They never made it to the final stage of grief, acceptance.  Lee had a point.  The war ended one hundred and fifty-two years ago, yet there are individuals still fighting it.  These wounds should have healed.  Instead they were allowed to fester. 

For others, there is a darker and far uglier explanation.  Our country’s diversity has always been our strength.  Unfortunately, there are those who perceive anyone whose skin color is not the same as their own as a threat to their control and supremacy.  On the eve of the Charlottesville rally, these individuals arrived at the statue of Robert E. Lee armed and carrying torches.  They shouted, “Blood and soil!” “You will not replace us!” “Jews will not replace us!”  This wasn’t about preserving history.  It was all about preserving white dominance. 

Vice News interviewed and followed Christopher Cantwell, a white supremacist, who was one of the leaders of the Charlottesville rally.  His comments were disturbing.  He advocated violence.  He defended the killing of Heather Heyer as justified.  He made bigoted comments about Jews and African-Americans.  Watching his interview and listening to his extreme racist remarks was stomach turning.  Cantwell and his ilk cannot claim that they are marching to preserve history.  They marched to spread hatred and bigotry.  They use these Confederate symbols as a rallying point for their own distorted views.  They use violence to make their point.  I was discussing this issue with a gentleman (I use the term loosely) on Facebook, recently.  He thought another civil war would be the solution, that it would rid our country of the “trash.”  He wasn’t talking about Cantwell and his breed, but anyone who opposed them.  I was stunned. 

My great-great-great grandfather and his four brothers fought on the Confederate side of the war.  He was the only one to return home.  These monuments do not represent what is good about the South and I have no problem with their removal.  They are symbols of hatred and bigotry.  As Lee recommended, these feelings need to be committed to oblivion.  This nation needs to heal and move on.