Many people criticize the Confederate Battle Flag because of its tainted history of racism and slavery. But the truth is the South were not the only colonies to own slaves. In fact, Northern colonies auctioned off slaves in the open market all the way from Philadelphia to Boston and New York. It has even been noted in history that many Union generals and heroes such as Ulysses S. Grant and even Benjamin Franklin owned plenty of slaves. Grant even kept his slaves until right after the 13th amendment was billed in December 1865; he was asked about his slaves and why they had not been freed yet to which Grant answered, “Good help is hard to come by these days.” Frankly, the only difference between the Union and the Confederacy was that the Union …show more content…
More so, they even auctioned off slaves to the South. But one thing remains, with the industrialization of the United States followed the minimizing of slavery. The North did not focus on European immigrants for slave work; they would be hired by factories in cities for labor. These were hardworking Europeans who were looking for life in a new world to feed their families. These people were not owned or beaten. In there lies the difference between slavery in the North and in the South. While slavery continued to flourish in the south, the Northern territories began to establish what America is known for today; a land of opportunities. They brought in European immigrants who were paid a measly wage but nonetheless were able to build a life for them outside of the mistreatment and inhumanities that came along with labor in the South. In fact, even former slaves travelled north for opportunities that were not available in the south such as: higher wages, less strenuous work, and a chance for an …show more content…
Whether victors write history or not, facts are facts. In every battle there are sides taken. The Confederacy took the side of wanting to expand slavery to the western territories and wanting to be their own nation with their own rules at a time when America was building their country. To keep this flag up and continuously remind the citizens who have ancestral ties to slavery and crimes committed against their race or even their family of the wounds created at such a time is inhumane to say the least. The Confederate Battle Flag holds the same value as the Swastika in Europe because although their purposes behind the actions committed were different, the crimes were similarly as cruel. Yes, a flag can have many different meanings, but the acts created by people who have used this flag to establish a sense of superiority towards other races other than their own were cruel and unusual, which has destroyed any possibility of this flag ever having a peaceful, non-violent history. As I stated before, although The Battle Flag has a distinct personal meaning to each individual, its roots run deep. And many still remember this flag for what it stood for back then; a symbol of 13 states who wanted to exclude themselves from
...more overpowering and overwhelming than any general feeling of Southern pride. America has obtained a reputation to be an accepting and open minded country, welcoming all of any race, couture and religion. The Preamble states clearly that America will establish justice and insure domestic tranquility for all. Neither of these entities are accomplished in America as long as the Confederate flag remains raised. Our nation is furthermore divided by racism through a flag that is possibly being used as a degradation tool. This battle with racism has become far too large for American citizens and anything that is viewed as racist in such a manner as the Confederate flag is, should be censored from society, in only a helpful practice. A state flag should be capable of uniting its citizens, instead of dividing them. The Confederate flag should be lowered immediately.
Formed at the eve of the Civil War, the United States (USA) and the Confederate States (CSA) were created for multiple reasons. The main reason of the formation includes that of political issues and slavery issues. Other ideas include the military, economics, etc. The USA was led by President Abraham Lincoln and the CSA was led under President Jefferson Davis. The CSA included the states of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas. The United States and Confederate States can be compared based on their advantages and viewpoints in the fields of how and why they were formed, the rights of the federal and state governments, views on slavery, economic issues, and the military strategies.
The Confederate flag is a famous symbol of the South’s side in the American Civil War. The controversy surrounding this flag has received a great bit of media attention considering how deeply affected and offended some people have become. Southerners consider themselves to be personally affected. A majority of supporters state that banning the Confederate flag strips them of their heritage, referring to the South’s part in the American Civil War. Persons who do not support the continued showing of the Confederate flag, such as non-Southerners, African Americans, and many others say that while the flag is a symbol of southern history, much of the history in the South includes racial segregations, lynchings, and slavery. As a matter of fact, the purpose of the Confederacy in the Civil War was to make sure slavery stayed an institution in America. The man who created the Confederate flag, William T. Thompson, stated this about the symbol of heritage: “As a people we are fighting to maintain the heavenly ordained supremacy of the white man over the inferior or colored race; a white flag would thus be emblematical of our cause” (Miessler par. 3). This alone clearly shows what the goal of the Confederacy
“The Confederate Flag: Controversy and Culture.” David Sarratt American Studies University of Virginia. Web. 22 Feb. 2014
One reason Confederate status should not be taken down is because the Civil War is apart of our country’s history. It is stated in “Monumental Battle” by Laura Anastaisa, “‘We never addressed the legacy of the Civil War or slavery, and what it means to the country now and what it meant then,”’ This presents the idea that the Civil War was not given enough credit. It ended slavery! Yes, there were still people back then that wanted to keep their slaves, however, they didn’t win, and ended up
The Confederate flag was used symbolically during the Civil War. To southerner’s, the flag represented a source of southern pride as well as a way of remembering the fallen Confederates. As the Civil War proceeded, the meaning of the flag began to change. Currently, the flag is being used as a symbol for racism. Due to this change in meaning, controversy over the flag has been exponentially growing. Although many would argue the original meaning behind the flag and that it is a symbol of historical culture that should not be forgotten, the flag should be banned due to its representation of racism and the seceding of the states.
The symbols of the Confederacy are not just about supremacy, but also, inextricably, about class. Confederate monuments and flag signify terrorism. They were raised deliberately to send a solid message to all who strolled in their shadows about who was still in control. The majority of African Americans whose descendants were enslaved. There have been many attempts to relocate monuments, remove flags, rename schools, and change the name of various holidays (“Confederate Remembrance 3”). Confederate monuments should be taken down immediately and placed in museums where citizens who support the monuments and the heritage of what happened a long time ago can view them
The Civil War. One of the bloodiest times in the history of the United States.During the Civil War, the Union and the Confederate had many differences in the way they directed their armies. They incorporated many strengths and advantages as well as disadvantages. One benefit that the north had was their strong leadership. Their main leader was the president, Abraham Lincoln, which gave them the help of a strong and dedicated leader on their side. The North also had more industrial power. The Union was supplied with way more factories and machines that they could use to their advantage. Then, they also had a wide range of transportation. The north had a plethora of railroads which helped them be able to travel throughout the Union side of the
First of all, there is an economic difference between the North and the South. In the North, society was fast becoming industrial and focused more on city life. In contrast, the South remained a region of small towns and large plantations. As Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin in 1793, cotton became very profitable (Grischy). People who owned land began to grow cotton which led to a large amount of cheap labor, so slaves were needed. The South became a one crop economy which depended mostly on cotton and therefore on slavery. On the other hand, the North was based more on industry rather than agriculture. It focused on manufacturing and using raw materials to make finished goods. While the northern people favored taxes on imports, also known as tariffs that protected factory owners and workers from foreign competition, the southern people, on the other hand, were opposed to tariffs. In order for Southerners to buy goods from the North, the Northern politicians passed heavy taxes on imported goods from Europe. The economic difference was one of the reasons that div...
The Confederate flag has been a prominent representation of Southern culture and heritage. Particularly, the significance of the Confederate flag in my home state of South Carolina is the symbolic representation of Southern states succeeding from the Union because of ideas by Abraham Lincoln that were not ideal to Southerners. The origin of the Confederate flag was during the Civil War when Confederate regiments could not distinguish the Union battle flag of stars and stripes apart from their own. Throughout the progression of the Civil War as southerners became known as Confederates, they began to distance themselves from symbols of the Union and sought a new symbol that represented their “confirmed independence”. The symbol later became the Confederate battle flag. As stated in the Confederate Battle Flag by John Coski, General John Bell Hood states, “To avoid dangerous confusion in action, each regiment will be required to bear the Confederate battle flag” (Coski 13). Confederate regiments were seeking for uniformity by adopting one battle flag to represent the Confederacy not only on the battlefield, but as a separate nation as well. Following the significant amount of blood shed from the Civil War, the Confederate flag did not shy away during Reconstruction. The flag ties in with southern culture because many southerners believe its representation is of their fallen ancestors who fought during the American Civil
The removal of the flag supports the idea that citizens should forget the bloodiest battle on American soil. History is used to aid in the understanding of a complex nation. However, flying the flag as an emblem of white supremacy is undoubtedly wrong and inappropriate. Toleration should only be granted when the flag is flown for historical purposes. The flying of the Confederate flag reminds individuals that the soldiers’ lives then, just as soldiers’ lives from battles today, were not lost in vain.
Red, white and blue, most people think of the American flag, but today I would like to talk about another flag in American history, the confederate flag. This summer after the killing of nine individuals in a historic black church, the Confederate flag was removed from government buildings, markets, and games. EBay, along with Amazon, Wal-Mart, and Sears, will no longer allow items that depict the controversial flag to be sold. Alongside of eBay, the Apple’s App Store has removed all games depicting the Confederate flag. (Swick) Was this an overreaction or was this long overdue? I think that this was, for the most part, an overreaction. I believe that the flag itself is a symbol of southern pride, or remembrance of the war, not to be meant as a hate symbol.
In conclusion, people should not take down confederate memorials as they are part of the history. They remind us of the cost of freedom and equality; they force us to remember the ignominious truth of the past; they serve as a mighty tool to educate the racists. We need them to avoid recommitting the same
Why be suppressed by a symbol deemed against African Americans when identity is purely subjective? Barkley was tired of having to constantly be reminded of a horrible time, so he took the symbol as his own and changed the meaning. He referred to the flag as representing black-power, which was the complete opposite of what society thought. This created a huge statement and made people stop and think about what an African American man was doing flaunting a confederate flag.
The Northerners were extremely aggravated with the Southerners’ position on slavery. Not only did they disagree that the Southerners did not have to pay the people who worked for them, but they also violated the African Americans’ human rights. People in the North didn’t rely on slavery. They were independent and their work force did not require outside labor. Two main occupations in the North included working in factories and mills. The Northerners were able to do these jobs themselves. If there had been more agricultural jobs...