April is Confederate History Month

For the states that still recognize it, I can’t think of a better month and day to acknowledge Confederate History Month.

Virginia FlaggersThe entrance of United States Colored Troops into the now former capital of the Confederate States of America 150 years ago today.

USCTs Enter RichmondYes, there is much to celebrate and remember on this day.

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10 comments… add one
  • joseph Apr 22, 2015 @ 17:38

    I think its great to remember confederate soldiers they are human just like anyone else, also its well to remember the history.

  • Leo Apr 3, 2015 @ 18:33

    Mississippi has Confederate Memorial Day on the last Monday of the month in April. I will likely visit the grave of my great-great grandfather who served in the 38th Mississippi at Vicksburg. His position on the line probably offered him a nice view of Pemberton negotiating the surrender with Grant. I will tidy up the gravesite while I’m there and leave flowers out of respect for the trials and tribulations he endured during the war – even if I disagree with the cause of the Confederacy. I see no reason for grand celebrations or public spectacle.

    I don’t have a particular problem with this holiday, but I also have no special love for the Confederacy either. I’m an American first and foremost.

    • Kevin Levin Apr 4, 2015 @ 1:55

      I’ve always believed that this is an appropriate way to remember one’s Confederate ancestors. There is a Confederate cemetery just a few blocks from where I taught in Charlottesville, Virginia. Whenever I brought students over for a class we made sure to clean up the site before leaving.

      I see no reason for grand celebrations or public spectacle.

      Once you reach this point it’s usually no longer about the soldiers.

      • Robert Moore Apr 4, 2015 @ 5:18

        “Once you reach this point it’s usually no longer about the soldiers.”

        I disagree. It can still be about the soldier, but more about the soldier as a human being first… as opposed to a man (that soldier) embracing the postwar legacy of the Lost Cause. Different times, different perspectives… most all lost to history because of the void they left behind, not clearly leaving a written story which tells us definitively as to who they were and why they wore a uniform.

        • Kevin Levin Apr 4, 2015 @ 5:53

          Absolutely. I was thinking very narrowly in that last comment.

      • Robert Moore Apr 4, 2015 @ 5:32

        Or, perhaps I should have said, such recognition as Leo represents is less “Confederate-centric” and more about the complicated story of the person to whom one pays respects, under the overarching, complex framework of the war. It becomes less of a public spectacle and more personal and centemplative in nature.

  • Msb Apr 3, 2015 @ 14:08

    I saw “Selma” today, a good reminder of another inspiring and historic march. Especially when the film reverts to news archive footage with all those CBFs proudly displayed as signs of hatred and white supremacy.

    • Kevin Levin Apr 3, 2015 @ 14:20

      CBFs not displayed by the Klan but by ordinary Americans. The message and explicit references to the Confederacy were crystal clear.

  • Brooks D. Simpson Apr 3, 2015 @ 13:05

    Ever note how many folks wear Confederate artillery garb? Guess they like the red on top.

    • Kevin Levin Apr 3, 2015 @ 13:07

      They are all about style, though it doesn’t quite work without the sunglasses. 🙂

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