"Commemoration, Not Celebration"
In the hustle and rush of the holidays, perhaps you've missed a little event taking place in Columbia, South Carolina. The city is marking the 150th anniversary of what appears to be the most significant event in that city's (and state's) history: the signing of the "Ordinance of Secession". The festivites include the mayor unveiling a historical marker on the site of the building where the event occurred, and a complete historical re-enactment of South Carolina's declaration that it was willing to destroy the United States in order to protect the institution of slavery.
I'm not sure who is more condescending: the "officials" who "were careful to call the sesquicentennial of secession "a commemoration and not a celebration" or the "Commander" of the state's Sons of Confederate Veterans, who insists, "We've always extended a hand of friendship [to] our black brothers and sisters we know..."
A "commemoration"? What's to commemorate? The men who signed the Ordinance of Secession in South Carolina 150 years ago did nothing worthy of a memorial. What they did was worthy of a hangman's noose. They proclaimed themselves proud enemies of the United States. And their deeds matched their words four months later when they turned cannons on the U.S. Army and fired the first shots of the Civil War. For that, they get a plaque? For that, they get a stage play in their honor?
That's not how Americans traditionally regard their sworn enemies. Even those who were, once, considered loyal Americans. Consider for a moment the monument to the commanders of the patriot forces at the Battle of Saratoga.
It has niches facing the four cardinal points of the compass. Each one commemorates (there's that word again) one of the four commanders of the Continental Army forces that battled the British at Saratoga. Three of the niches contain statues of Generals Gates, Schuyler and Morgan. The fourth commander was Benedict Arnold. His niche is empty.
That's as it should be. After Saratoga, Arnold sulked over his perceived slights at the hands of the Continental Congress. So he sold out America. He sided with the Crown, tried to betray his former command at West Point, and ended up hightailing it to England, where he collected his 30 pieces of silver. For that, he is erased from any "commemoration" of the Revolutionary War. As well he should be.
Perhaps South Carolina (and the other states that joined its treason) will erect a plaque to Benedict Arnold, too. It's only fitting.
I'm not sure who is more condescending: the "officials" who "were careful to call the sesquicentennial of secession "a commemoration and not a celebration" or the "Commander" of the state's Sons of Confederate Veterans, who insists, "We've always extended a hand of friendship [to] our black brothers and sisters we know..."
A "commemoration"? What's to commemorate? The men who signed the Ordinance of Secession in South Carolina 150 years ago did nothing worthy of a memorial. What they did was worthy of a hangman's noose. They proclaimed themselves proud enemies of the United States. And their deeds matched their words four months later when they turned cannons on the U.S. Army and fired the first shots of the Civil War. For that, they get a plaque? For that, they get a stage play in their honor?
That's not how Americans traditionally regard their sworn enemies. Even those who were, once, considered loyal Americans. Consider for a moment the monument to the commanders of the patriot forces at the Battle of Saratoga.
It has niches facing the four cardinal points of the compass. Each one commemorates (there's that word again) one of the four commanders of the Continental Army forces that battled the British at Saratoga. Three of the niches contain statues of Generals Gates, Schuyler and Morgan. The fourth commander was Benedict Arnold. His niche is empty.
That's as it should be. After Saratoga, Arnold sulked over his perceived slights at the hands of the Continental Congress. So he sold out America. He sided with the Crown, tried to betray his former command at West Point, and ended up hightailing it to England, where he collected his 30 pieces of silver. For that, he is erased from any "commemoration" of the Revolutionary War. As well he should be.
Perhaps South Carolina (and the other states that joined its treason) will erect a plaque to Benedict Arnold, too. It's only fitting.
posted by wally at 7:42 PM
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