The Civil War in Modern Society
By Dani Toscano
In 1861, during the start of the American Civil War, a man stood at a podium in front of a roaring crowd. They stomped their feet wildly and they cheered when he spoke. "The time for compromise has now passed, and the South is determined to maintain her position, and make all who oppose her smell Southern powder and feel Southern steel." With such pride, the man encouraged the crowd to take the initiative and fight for Confederacy, slavery, and justice. Four years later, the crowd that had stood before the man was infuriated because those who were meant to “smell Southern powder and feel Southern steel” defeated the Confederate army, and began to reconstruct what was left of the South. The Civil War left them with nothing, and to this day the Southern majority holds different morals and values that conflict with parts of modern America. Southern states like South Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, and others have still not moved forward with the rest of the country. While we live without slavery now, and they live without a Confederate government, this community is one of the major areas that haven’t modernized over time. People in these states live in tightly constricted areas, have a poor economy and an even poorer education, as a result of how the Civil War had left them.
Nowadays, much of America seems to understand the wide diversity that populates the country’s cities, suburbs, and more. But where do the other people stand? Where do the racists “go”? For the most part, it’s not that they really “go” anywhere; it’s the fact that they’ve stood in the same place their ancestors lived 144 years ago. Like their elders, numerous Southerners continue to be affiliated with small or large militia groups.
The most infamous splinter militia group is the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). The KKK is notoriously known for their strong violent acts towards African Americans, and anyone else who may get in their way. In the South, the KKK is their knight in shining armor because a few supremacists believe that white people who share the same beliefs as them are “becoming a minority.” The supremacists also believe that every non-white has a real hatred for those of non-European lineage.
The KKK frequently broadcasts their own web show and has their own website which proves that they’re trying to publicize their opinions more. On the website, they have a song blasting in the background with lyrics: “I hold my head high and I sing it with pride- projecting my race till the end… Oh Arian battle all over the world; fight for the right to survive.” The group is using common methods to advertise ideas that are on the fringe of society. Along with a twitter page, T-Shirts, and more, the site also encourages viewers to put their children in private school or home school, which would teach their children that homosexuality and other races should never be dominant. Clearly, while much of America has moved onto modern ideas, this small community continues to look back at the past to view what to determine as right versus wrong.
Recently in 1998, a writer went to report a man’s hate crime murder and went to a Ku Klux Klan gathering. He asked a woman about her feelings on slavery, and she apathetically replied “Blacks just need to get over slavery. You can’t live in the past.” After, the writer mentioned how she might be accused of living in the past by defending the Confederate flag, and the woman said “[Blacks] want the best jobs, the biggest money. Now they want this. If we lose the mascot, it’ll just be a matter of time before we lose everything. Don’t put us where they used to be.” With this statement, some can see that she’s mad the Blacks feel threatened by the flag when she considers it a Southern icon. But the question is- why? Why is this woman so angry that towards the end of the question, she grinds her teeth in fury?
It’s a question that modern America may never understand. The idea that radical supremacists’ values haven’t changed one bit since the Civil War is frightening even after 144 years have passed. What will they be like in the future when people will be even more open to every race? Will they try to secede from the nation just as they did in the Civil War era? What might be their breaking point? Although it would be wonderful to say that the Southern supremacists could just accept it soon, it’s most likely that they won’t. They create their own facts like “Cleopatra wasn’t an Egyptian; she was Greek because Greece came to Egypt at one point. That’s why she’s so powerful.” All these invented stories are passed down from generation to generation continuing the ignorance.
How can we as a country explain this ignorance that still exists today, despite all the lives that were lost to protect us as a nation from racism?
The reality is that the outcome of the Civil War is known for being the catalyst for rapid progression towards change for most of America. But with change, comes a new society. We, as the United States of America, need to remember that change is good, and promotes a constant searching for something better than the “status quo.” Yet most of all, we as a nation should be proud of our history, and hopeful that the good intentions of our forefathers will again be carried out by many who believe that no one person is better than that of his brother. We, as a nation, should be open to the different aspects of the world. While some Middle Eastern countries grow to hate America, they have their own reasons. While some of America hates Iraq for 9/11, they have their own reasons too. With different countries, everyone will progress at certain rates and we should be hopeful that one day, that portion of Southern America could catch up to modern America’s progress.
As for the man who encouraged the passionate crowd to stand up for what they believe in, he was imprisoned after the war ended. Two years passed, and he was released and he spent the remainder of his life writing and speaking about his concerns that related to the Federal government. Some militia groups, such as the Ku Klux Klan, look back on his words as an encouragement for Southern pride. His name was Jefferson Davis.
Works Cited
"Civil War Quotes and Facts." Civil War Quotes and Facts. Nella_Ware. Web..
Horwitz, Tony. Confederates in the Attic. Vintage, 1999. Print.
Klan, Ku Klux. Bringing a Message of Hope and Deliverance to White Christian America! KKK. Web..
By Dani Toscano
In 1861, during the start of the American Civil War, a man stood at a podium in front of a roaring crowd. They stomped their feet wildly and they cheered when he spoke. "The time for compromise has now passed, and the South is determined to maintain her position, and make all who oppose her smell Southern powder and feel Southern steel." With such pride, the man encouraged the crowd to take the initiative and fight for Confederacy, slavery, and justice. Four years later, the crowd that had stood before the man was infuriated because those who were meant to “smell Southern powder and feel Southern steel” defeated the Confederate army, and began to reconstruct what was left of the South. The Civil War left them with nothing, and to this day the Southern majority holds different morals and values that conflict with parts of modern America. Southern states like South Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, and others have still not moved forward with the rest of the country. While we live without slavery now, and they live without a Confederate government, this community is one of the major areas that haven’t modernized over time. People in these states live in tightly constricted areas, have a poor economy and an even poorer education, as a result of how the Civil War had left them.
Nowadays, much of America seems to understand the wide diversity that populates the country’s cities, suburbs, and more. But where do the other people stand? Where do the racists “go”? For the most part, it’s not that they really “go” anywhere; it’s the fact that they’ve stood in the same place their ancestors lived 144 years ago. Like their elders, numerous Southerners continue to be affiliated with small or large militia groups.
The most infamous splinter militia group is the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). The KKK is notoriously known for their strong violent acts towards African Americans, and anyone else who may get in their way. In the South, the KKK is their knight in shining armor because a few supremacists believe that white people who share the same beliefs as them are “becoming a minority.” The supremacists also believe that every non-white has a real hatred for those of non-European lineage.
The KKK frequently broadcasts their own web show and has their own website which proves that they’re trying to publicize their opinions more. On the website, they have a song blasting in the background with lyrics: “I hold my head high and I sing it with pride- projecting my race till the end… Oh Arian battle all over the world; fight for the right to survive.” The group is using common methods to advertise ideas that are on the fringe of society. Along with a twitter page, T-Shirts, and more, the site also encourages viewers to put their children in private school or home school, which would teach their children that homosexuality and other races should never be dominant. Clearly, while much of America has moved onto modern ideas, this small community continues to look back at the past to view what to determine as right versus wrong.
Recently in 1998, a writer went to report a man’s hate crime murder and went to a Ku Klux Klan gathering. He asked a woman about her feelings on slavery, and she apathetically replied “Blacks just need to get over slavery. You can’t live in the past.” After, the writer mentioned how she might be accused of living in the past by defending the Confederate flag, and the woman said “[Blacks] want the best jobs, the biggest money. Now they want this. If we lose the mascot, it’ll just be a matter of time before we lose everything. Don’t put us where they used to be.” With this statement, some can see that she’s mad the Blacks feel threatened by the flag when she considers it a Southern icon. But the question is- why? Why is this woman so angry that towards the end of the question, she grinds her teeth in fury?
It’s a question that modern America may never understand. The idea that radical supremacists’ values haven’t changed one bit since the Civil War is frightening even after 144 years have passed. What will they be like in the future when people will be even more open to every race? Will they try to secede from the nation just as they did in the Civil War era? What might be their breaking point? Although it would be wonderful to say that the Southern supremacists could just accept it soon, it’s most likely that they won’t. They create their own facts like “Cleopatra wasn’t an Egyptian; she was Greek because Greece came to Egypt at one point. That’s why she’s so powerful.” All these invented stories are passed down from generation to generation continuing the ignorance.
How can we as a country explain this ignorance that still exists today, despite all the lives that were lost to protect us as a nation from racism?
The reality is that the outcome of the Civil War is known for being the catalyst for rapid progression towards change for most of America. But with change, comes a new society. We, as the United States of America, need to remember that change is good, and promotes a constant searching for something better than the “status quo.” Yet most of all, we as a nation should be proud of our history, and hopeful that the good intentions of our forefathers will again be carried out by many who believe that no one person is better than that of his brother. We, as a nation, should be open to the different aspects of the world. While some Middle Eastern countries grow to hate America, they have their own reasons. While some of America hates Iraq for 9/11, they have their own reasons too. With different countries, everyone will progress at certain rates and we should be hopeful that one day, that portion of Southern America could catch up to modern America’s progress.
As for the man who encouraged the passionate crowd to stand up for what they believe in, he was imprisoned after the war ended. Two years passed, and he was released and he spent the remainder of his life writing and speaking about his concerns that related to the Federal government. Some militia groups, such as the Ku Klux Klan, look back on his words as an encouragement for Southern pride. His name was Jefferson Davis.
Works Cited
"Civil War Quotes and Facts." Civil War Quotes and Facts. Nella_Ware. Web.
Horwitz, Tony. Confederates in the Attic. Vintage, 1999. Print.
Klan, Ku Klux. Bringing a Message of Hope and Deliverance to White Christian America! KKK. Web.
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