Tag: confederate statues
bookmark_border“Sunday in the South” – incredible new song and music video
If you haven’t listened to the new song “Sunday in the South,” or watched the music video, you really should! You can do so on YouTube here.
The song, by Shenandoah, Jason Aldean, and Luke Bryan, contains a verse about the Confederate flag, and the video features a Confederate statue. Since the horrifying events that took place beginning in late spring of 2020, I never thought a mainstream song would mention anything having to do with the Confederacy in a positive or even neutral light. But that is exactly what the three singers do in this song and video.
“A ragged rebel flag flies high above it all, popping in the wind like an angry cannonball. Now the holes of history are cold and still; they still smell the powder burning and they probably always will.”
What is particularly notable is that in the video, the camera lingers on the dates “1861-1865” on the pedestal of the statue. Making it clear to the viewer that this is, indeed, a Confederate statue, and not just a random, generic statue. Making it clear that the makers of the video know that this is a Confederate statue and chose to feature it in the video with this knowledge.
This is remarkable and admirable. The song and video are beautiful, and I love the statement that they make. Listening to this song, and watching this video, makes me feel seen and included after nearly five years of the exact opposite of this. Salute to Shenandoah, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, and everyone involved in making this video, for both their talent and their courage.
bookmark_border“Belongs in the dumpster of history”
“Belongs in the dumpster of history,” you wrote, under a picture of one of the few things in the world that is beautiful and meaningful.
How could you see something magical, one of the few sources of happiness and joy that actually exist, and think that it belongs in a metaphorical “dumpster”?
But then I realized. You’ve never had to deal with the pain, the shame, of not fitting in. Of not being able to make friends. Of having everything you say, everything you wear, everything you do, criticized. Of being told that if only you changed the way you talked, dressed, stood, sat, moved, felt, thought, spent your time, then you would be healthy, and people would like you. You were never bullied and had your parents respond by telling you that you should stop wearing dresses and stop wearing your hair in pigtails, because then people would be less likely to bully you.
You’re not different. You don’t think for yourself. You follow social norms. You have friends. You fit in. You’re a bland, mundane person who is just like everyone else.
You’ve never suffered. You’ve never felt pain.
In fact, you’re not really a person at all, because if you were, you would have a soul, and if you had a soul, then you too would be filled with awe and wonder at the statue that is being built, rather than claiming that it belongs in a metaphorical “dumpster.”
You’re a lump of flesh and blood with no soul, no mind, and no capacity for independent thought.
God forbid that people who are different from you exist.
God forbid that people who are different from you be honored with monuments.
Can’t have that. Can’t have any diversity allowed to exist in the world. Can’t have anything that actually makes life worth living.
Clearly, in your eyes, only people like you have the right to exist, and anyone who is different deserves to be put into a metaphorical “dumpster.”
Without the Confederacy, history is bland and mundane, just a long tale of mindless, conformist people who are all the same, who all think the same, and who all do the same things. And what is the point of that? What is the point of studying that, honoring that, being interested in that? What is the point of living at all?
There is none.
The Confederacy is my special interest. The Confederacy is what makes my life worth living. The Confederacy is magical to me. It is the most beautiful thing in the world, and nothing else can compare. How could you, how dare you, how could you possibly consider my special interest to be something that belongs in a dumpster?
in conclusion, I hope that you die a slow and painful death, and that once you’re gone no one remembers you. That’s what you deserve for being a mindless bully. That’s what you deserve for having the cruelty, nastiness, and utter moral bankruptcy to claim that my special interest “belongs in the dumpster of history.” In reality, you are the one who belongs in the dumpster of history. You have no empathy, no character, no mind, no capacity for independent thought, and no soul.
bookmark_border“Any society which suppresses the heritage of its conquered minorities…”
“Any society which suppresses the heritage of its conquered minorities, prevents their history or denies them their symbols, has sown the seeds of their own destruction.”
– Sir William Wallace, 1281
bookmark_borderFour years ago today…
Four years ago today, three historical monuments were removed from the North Carolina state capitol grounds in Raleigh. One honored Confederate soldiers, another honored the Women of the Confederacy, and the third honored Henry Lawson Wyatt, the first Confederate soldier from North Carolina to be killed in the war.
“Monuments to white supremacy don’t belong in places of allegiance, and it’s past time that these painful memorials be moved in a legal, safe way,” stated Gov. Roy Cooper.
Even four years later, reading these words makes me sick to my stomach.
These were not monuments to white supremacy; they were monuments to the idea of being different, thinking for oneself, and resisting authority. They were monuments signifying the right of people who are different from the norm to be accepted and included.
These memorials were not painful. Rather the removal of these memorials was painful. The removal of these memorials – along with countless others like them across the country and world – was not only painful but was the most painful thing, by far, that has ever happened to me. I believe that it was the most painful thing that has ever happened to any person.
Because I am a person who is different from the norm, these memorials were necessary in order for me to have a life worth living. And Roy Cooper chose to take them away, on purpose. This action was so completely lacking in empathy that it defies comprehension. And Cooper’s words, in which he characterizes the memorials that he removed as somehow “painful” – while completely failing to acknowledge the excruciating, indescribable, and unbearable pain that he inflicted by removing them – are even more lacking in empathy.
In other words, not only does Cooper falsely condemn statues as “painful” and “white supremacist” when they are nothing of the sort, but he simultaneously fails to acknowledge the pain inflicted by his own actions.
Four years later, I am still grieving. I am still in pain from Roy Cooper’s actions and words, and the dozens upon dozens of similarly horrible actions and words of bigots and bullies across the country and world. To some degree, I always will be.
It is reprehensible for bullies like Roy Cooper to describe the statues that they obliterated from existence as somehow painful, when in reality it is the statues’ removals that are not merely painful, but excruciatingly, indescribably, and unbearably so. The words and actions of these bigots demonstrate a complete lack of empathy, complete intolerance for people who are different from them, and complete disregard for our feelings and thoughts.
Confederate memorials are not painful.
Removal of Confederate memorials is painful.
And not just painful, but the most painful thing that has ever happened, and the most painful thing imaginable.
Period. Full stop. No exceptions.
bookmark_borderNew Confederate monument in Higgston, Georgia!
Fantastic news: a new Confederate monument is being built in Higgston, Georgia!
The Robert A. Toombs Camp #932 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans is leading the construction of what they describe as “a grand monument and memorial park honoring our ancestors.” It will be the first new Confederate monument in Georgia in almost 100 years!
“In a society of constant attacks on our heritage this is a momentous undertaking for all involved,” writes Camp #932.
To raise money for the project, they are selling bricks for $60. The bricks will be placed in the plaza around the statue and can be engraved with up to three lines of text honoring you, your ancestor(s), or anyone.
Click the link below for the full letter from Camp #932, including the brick order form and a small picture of what the statue will look like.
News like this is so important, because it gives me hope for the future during a time where that is often in short supply.
bookmark_borderThe statue family expands…
On Tuesday, April 2, at about 9:30 p.m. a large black truck pulled into my driveway. Inside it were two new statues, coming to live with me.
That’s right, two.
One of these statues was Robert E. Lee. This statue, I had been anticipating for a while. About a year ago, I paid the deposit for him, and over the course of the year I received pictures documenting the process of creating him, from sketch to clay model to molds to finished product. Watching my statue come into the world was such a cool experience. Once the finishing touches were complete, I put the delivery date on my calendar, and I was eagerly anticipating seeing my new statue in person.
Four days before Lee’s arrival, the company that makes the statues asked me if, by any chance, I might want a statue of Nathan Bedford Forrest as well. This statue had been made at the same time as Lee, for a different person, but the original buyer had backed out. I thought it over for about 24 hours and, being me, said yes.
So, wrapped in blankets inside the truck on that cold and drizzly night were two new statues: one that was made for me and one that I adopted. Forrest was closest to the door, and a little ways further inside the truck was Lee. The statues were lifted out of the truck and placed in their new home.
Here is what they look like in daylight. In my opinion, they are the most beautiful sight imaginable.
From left to right:
General Robert E. Lee. He’s 4 ft tall, weighs 130 lbs, and is based on the statue that used to be in the state capitol building in Richmond, Virginia, as well as the one that used to be in Washington, D.C. He is one of a batch of 10 Lee statues that were made.
General Nathan Bedford Forrest. He is 4 ft tall, weighs 90 lbs, and is one of a batch of 5. Because he was a cavalry general, most statues depict him on horseback, and this is the first time a standing statue of Forrest has ever existed.
And of course… General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, who has been with me for one and a half years now. He is happy to have some friends!
I am having some landscaping work done in the yard, which is why Stonewall is not in his usual spot. For now, the statues are hanging out in this gravelly area off to the side. The weather has been rainy and yucky for the statues’ first week in their new home. Hopefully they don’t mind it too much! Once the weather improves, I will get them set up in a prettier, more permanent way.
I love the statues and am so happy to have them here. They mean so much to me.
bookmark_borderSeen on Facebook…
A refreshing point of view from Germany. The points that he makes are 100% correct.
bookmark_borderRobert E. Lee memorial at Antietam Battlefield
Beautiful post from Dixie Forever about the Robert E. Lee statue at Antietam Battlefield:
You can also view the post here on Facebook.
This post really brings home for me the gravity of the horrible things that have happened, and continue to happen, in our country. The images of this statue are so beautiful, but are also a punch in the gut for me. Sadly, as the post states, this is currently one of the most threatened monuments in America. It’s despicable and sickening that this is the case. How anyone could think that the battlefield would be made better by removing this beautiful statue (beautiful both aesthetically and in terms of what it represents) is incomprehensible. If the bullies, whose goal is to inflict the maximum amount of pain possible on people who are different from them, get their way then I hope at least the statue will be returned to private land as it was before 2005, when the National Park Service took ownership of it.
bookmark_border“Are we the only country the places monuments to TRAITORS???”
So said an idiotic comment that I saw on Facebook the other day.
In other words…
Are we the only country that places monuments to PEOPLE WHO THINK FOR THEMSELVES???
Are we the only country that places monuments to PEOPLE WHO STAND UP TO AUTHORITY???
Are we the only country that places monuments to PEOPLE WHO ARE DIFFERENT FROM THE MAJORITY IN ANY WAY???
Oh no, not that!!!
God forbid that a country put up monuments to people who are at all unique, distinctive, or remarkable.
God forbid that a country put up monuments to people who are, you know, actually worthy of being honored with monuments.
God forbid that a country put up monuments honoring anything other than compliance, obedience, and mindless conformity.
In reality, the people that this idiot considers “traitors” are not only abundantly worthy of being honored with monuments; they are the only people who are.