Meet the "War for Southern Independence," which is about to have its 150th anniversary. The New York Times reports that the Sons of Confederate Veterans are planning celebrations and parades across the old Confederacy.But first, there's the matter of rewriting history, which the Georgia chapter begins with this television ad:
The year 2011 will mark the 150th anniversary of the War for Southern Independence, and the Sons of Confederate Veterans encourage you to celebrate this noble time in our history, when men and women of the South stood courageously for liberty even in the face of insurmountable odds. Not a Civil War fought to take over the United States as it is called in history books today, this was war in which Southerners fought to defend their homes and families against an aggressive invasion by federal troops. The South peacefully seceded, just like our founding fathers did in 1776 with England, and all we wanted was to be left alone to govern ourselves. But the North and Abraham Lincoln would not allow the South to peacefully leave because of the taxes and tariffs the South paid. So the South fought for her liberty, and fought valiantly.
The Georgia chapter will also help you learn the new history of slavery in America, too. If it's not exactly "We didn't do it," then it's certainly "You did it, too." Given the gravity of what was done by plenty of folks, arguing over whose part is whose seems hideously beside the point.