Bullying the Past

Historical perspective in the wake of the Charlottesville, Virginia tragedy seems to be the biggest casualty inflicted where two philosophically anti-American groups from opposing aisles waged war over an American monument. Yes. An American one.

Choosing the lesser of two evils never vindicates the choice or does whats right. Extremists on both sides of this argument are attempting to bully the nations values by targeting its history with bumper-sticker chants and symbolism. Neo-Nazis carrying Confederate flags ignorantly belies the fact that American descendants of the men who fought under those colors spent World War Two exterminating Nazis and their supremacist philosophies. The other side is describing Confederate soldiers with social concepts and words that didnt even exist in the Civil War era - interjecting a modern ideology into an ancient past where it has no place.

The response from elected officials and social media pro and con illustrates how badly U.S. history, as a whole, is taught in this nations classrooms. The most troubling to watch is the knee-jerk reaction of officials trying to ride this political wave and treating a majority of their electorate, whove walked by these statues for generations, like uninformed children. Tampa, FL Mayor Bob Buckhorns comment to CNN that his city's Confederate memorials "doesn't represent who we are a people" seems to forget that protecting, preserving, and promoting the heritage of your constituents is part of elected governance, whether you like that history or not.

The argument also insinuates that hundreds of thousands of Confederate sailors, soldiers, and statesmen, were childless men. U.S. censuses studied before and after the Civil War lead experts to estimate Confederate descendants number in the millions today. Families are rediscovering their histories and genealogy is a $2 billion plus industry, especially with heritage tourism. It should come as no surprise that recent polls taken in the wake of Charlottesville show most Americans support leaving these monuments as they are.

The celebration of individual achievement and merit in this nation regardless of their personal beliefs is what makes the United States the most unique country in the world. Theyre part of our story as a people warts and all. These statues of artists, authors, explorers, inventors, leaders, and soldiers, who left behind unrivaled legacies of accomplishment, help us ensure their lives are remembered and survive times like this. Weve historically lionized and erected monuments to commemorate service to a national cause or to recognize Americans who exhibited human brilliance in some way even to homegrown enemies in the field.

Following the Confederate victory at Fredericksburg, VA in December 1862 and the uncertain fate of the ongoing battle of Stones River, TN , President Lincoln diverted his attention from the war long enough to personally sign one of the grisliest orders issued in that era. The day after Christmas, in front of a large cheering Minnesota crowd, 38 Santee Sioux were hanged for the murders of more than 800 settlers in what still stands as the largest mass execution on American soil in U.S. history.

It would go largely unnoticed in the headlines of the day, but the Sioux made sure no one forgot. Many great chiefs would rise to fight American soldiers and settlers. Crazy Horse stood above the others for his courage and leadership. He decoyed U.S. troops under command of a young Captain Fetterman dealing the Army it's worse defeat on the Great Plains. It was second only to the 1876 defeat of George Custer at Little Big Horn where Crazy Horse personally led two charges through infantry lines unscathed. He was eventually captured and killed by a prison guard a year later while trying to escape from a military prison, but Crazy Horses legend among American peoples would grow.

Since 1948, efforts have been underway to hopefully create what will be the largest non-religious sculpture in the world to this American icon. Thunderhead Mountain ironically sits between Custer and Hill City, South Dakota putting it within an hours drive from the staring eyes of Abraham Lincoln on Mount Rushmore. The tactics gleaned from soldiers and settlers fighting against American Indian tribes in the west contributed greatly to the evolution of our own military and defined the region for the entire world.

The military faces of Lee, Jackson, Forrest, and the Confederacy became synonymous with the American south just as the military faces of Cochise, Crazy Horse, Geronimo, and Sitting Bull became synonymous to the American west. They were underfunded, out-gunned, and out-matched by a superior force on every level, but their innovative leadership, ingenious talents, perseverance, and brilliant defiance in the face of adversity earned monumental respect from their countrymen. A scholarly people who, as the nation matured, would eventually recognize American traits in these former enemies worth emulating and lives worth remembering regardless of the causes they fought for or supported.