How Does the South Reclaim its Legacy?
Part 4 of 4
Economics as an effective political influence
If you remember earlier in the paper we talked about NASCAR. Remember the Confederate flag proudly waving. Not anymore. When the big money came to NASCAR the monied people made the removal of the flag non-negotiable. And throughout the universities in the South the same has happened.
It’s time for Southerners to reverse that. How?
If a cause comes to you for money, tell them you want some indication they are proud of their Southern roots. If they won’t, then refuse to donate. Make it known why, make it known you want a Southern presence, or you will look elsewhere to contribute.
If it comes to purchasing as a consumer, don’t buy from those who attack the South, or Christianity. Boycott; it doesn’t have to be loud, it just has to be long and growing to be effective. And you need to talk to your family and friends about it. At the same time, those businesses that are Pro Southern and Pro Christian deserve support. You need to buy from them, and you need to tell them why.
If one town is supportive of the Cause and another not; go to the one that is supportive and purchase from them. Tell them why. On the way home, go to the town that is not supportive, take your receipt into the equivalent store, hand it to them and tell them why your money went somewhere else.
Money has to flows towards the South, not just geographically, but towards the South we want to revive if it is to happen. Money has momentum. It may start as a small trickle towards the Cause, but as more and more people hear and make the same consumer decisions, the trickle can become a roaring tide.
While we may not like the power of money to influence reality, the fact is that if we don’t accept its role and turn it to our own ends we shall forever fail to reach our goal. If you want a Southern Legacy it will take money to create it, sustain it, and protect it.
In the 1970’s - 80’s entertainment dollars flowed towards musical groups like Alabama, Allman Brothers, and many others.
Cultural Identity
At first glance, for some, Cultural Identity may seem obvious, or a no brainer. I would contend it may be the most difficult part of reclaiming the Southern Legacy.
In 1860 the South might easily claim to be more diverse in cultural identity than the north. The South not only had most of the same Euro migration sects as the north, but obviously had a multi sect slave class, plus a somewhat integrated Indian element, (like the Cherokees in North Carolina, and the Six Nations of present day Oklahoma) but also had the mixture of French – Spanish Cajuns, and the Mexicans of Texas. All of these peoples were a part of the South and all contributed to the Cause.
One point missed in most histories of the war is that the South’s 3 million slaves did not revolt at home while the men were away at war. The Emancipation Proclamation which claimed to free the slaves in the portions of the states still in rebellion did not serve its hidden purpose. Even the offer of freedom was not enough to motivate the slaves of the South to kill their masters and their families. Has anyone ever given serious thought to what would have occurred in the summer of 1863 if, while Lee’s forces prepared for an invasion of the North, thousands of slaves had started a violent revolt in the deep South? Who would have put it down? What would the governors have done, what calls upon Jefferson Davis would have been made to send help to home! Would desertion have increased as men found their families threatened? And yet, that never happened.
After the war, it was deserters from both armies who caused the great fear in the South, not freed African Americans. And we see over and over again blacks attending Confederate Veterans reunions because of their service to the Cause. Divisions between white and black appear to have been exacerbated intentionally in the late 1950’s – 60’s to the present. Unfortunately, racism exists today on both sides of the color line. For the South it is time to mend fences, time to recognize the South as a whole. When the north and globalists hurt today’s South it is all of it, not just the white portion of it. When borders are not closed, it is Southerners of all ethnicities that must accept trespass of property, the violence of drug wars, and the higher costs at the state level because the federal government is NOT doing its primary job.
The whole South fought the Union. Slave did not revolt during the war. Had 3 million slaves, or even a relatively small percentage of them, revolted during the war it could have changed the course of the war and brought it to a much quicker conclusion. The opposite occurred. The slaves, for the most part, remained loyal and even participated at the front in the armies.
So if this element of the history were to be revealed it might work to heal some of today’s wounds and possibly change attitudes. But that is not the only challenge for the new South. Like the rest of America, millions of illegal immigrants have settled in the South. And then of course, there are large numbers of Yankee immigrants who bring with them a Yankee slant.
For there to be a real revival and rebirth of the South, as a region, accommodations would have to be made to include and assimilate different cultures. If this issue is not addressed and considered, the new South would continue the problems created by America’s century’s old hodge - podge immigration policy. At its core, the South would still retain its Christian anglo – celtic traditions though somewhat diminished by the absorption and inclusion of so many other cultures. Some in the Southern movement have real problems with this reality.
In the ante bellum era the South was strong because of the living and working relationships of its various peoples. Somehow this “Southern unity” must be recreated through equality and not submission.
Another aspect of the Cultural South must see revival. Southerners need to embrace their colors, the battle flag of the Confederacy. Too many Southerners attempt to divide the South on these colors. But what region of the nation has a single flag which represent it? Which region of America has a symbol recognized around the world as our is? And when other people across the planet see our colors what do they think? Racism? No. They see defiance of tyranny, and a willingness to fight for independence. Look what flag was present when the Berlin Wall fell! Which flag was it that was flown in Afghanistan as the Russians were chased out of the nation?
The Confederate battle flag is a symbol as well known as the Golden arches of McDonald’s or the Star of the Dallas Cowboys. Where commercial enterprises have spent billions to create worldwide recognized symbols, the battle flag has no money behind its recognition. Only the blood and valor of our Southern ancestors is the investment for this symbol of the South. These colors must be re-embraced by all in the South.
The Southern national anthem must reclaim its place at events across the South. This snappy, optimistic song has only one home. It is Southern. And each time it is played it re-asserts the Legacy of the region.
Reclaiming the Legacy of the South is about restoring the pride of a people, the independence of people and the willingness by all, on all sides in the South to make this region of the nation the engine to rebuild America in the twenty first century.
Summation
As you can see from this brief and incomplete presentation, there will be a lot of work to revive a Southern Legacy, a modern version. Looking at it, it seems so daunting, so large that no one could possible achieve it in a hundred years. And yet, as Christians we know the power of our God, and that all happens in His time. So it is possible, and it can happen faster than we could ever imagine if it be His will and His time.
The question is will you pray on this? Will you consider it? Will you talk to others about it?
What happened in Memphis is neither a beginning, nor an end. If we do nothing these won’t be the last parks renamed, or the last time the South will endure embarrassment. And if we do determine to commence a real campaign and do the work in the political arena it still will be decades before things may change.
I have done what I have been given to do.
Respectfully,
Mark Vogl
Economics as an effective political influence
If you remember earlier in the paper we talked about NASCAR. Remember the Confederate flag proudly waving. Not anymore. When the big money came to NASCAR the monied people made the removal of the flag non-negotiable. And throughout the universities in the South the same has happened.
It’s time for Southerners to reverse that. How?
If a cause comes to you for money, tell them you want some indication they are proud of their Southern roots. If they won’t, then refuse to donate. Make it known why, make it known you want a Southern presence, or you will look elsewhere to contribute.
If it comes to purchasing as a consumer, don’t buy from those who attack the South, or Christianity. Boycott; it doesn’t have to be loud, it just has to be long and growing to be effective. And you need to talk to your family and friends about it. At the same time, those businesses that are Pro Southern and Pro Christian deserve support. You need to buy from them, and you need to tell them why.
If one town is supportive of the Cause and another not; go to the one that is supportive and purchase from them. Tell them why. On the way home, go to the town that is not supportive, take your receipt into the equivalent store, hand it to them and tell them why your money went somewhere else.
Money has to flows towards the South, not just geographically, but towards the South we want to revive if it is to happen. Money has momentum. It may start as a small trickle towards the Cause, but as more and more people hear and make the same consumer decisions, the trickle can become a roaring tide.
While we may not like the power of money to influence reality, the fact is that if we don’t accept its role and turn it to our own ends we shall forever fail to reach our goal. If you want a Southern Legacy it will take money to create it, sustain it, and protect it.
In the 1970’s - 80’s entertainment dollars flowed towards musical groups like Alabama, Allman Brothers, and many others.
Cultural Identity
At first glance, for some, Cultural Identity may seem obvious, or a no brainer. I would contend it may be the most difficult part of reclaiming the Southern Legacy.
In 1860 the South might easily claim to be more diverse in cultural identity than the north. The South not only had most of the same Euro migration sects as the north, but obviously had a multi sect slave class, plus a somewhat integrated Indian element, (like the Cherokees in North Carolina, and the Six Nations of present day Oklahoma) but also had the mixture of French – Spanish Cajuns, and the Mexicans of Texas. All of these peoples were a part of the South and all contributed to the Cause.
One point missed in most histories of the war is that the South’s 3 million slaves did not revolt at home while the men were away at war. The Emancipation Proclamation which claimed to free the slaves in the portions of the states still in rebellion did not serve its hidden purpose. Even the offer of freedom was not enough to motivate the slaves of the South to kill their masters and their families. Has anyone ever given serious thought to what would have occurred in the summer of 1863 if, while Lee’s forces prepared for an invasion of the North, thousands of slaves had started a violent revolt in the deep South? Who would have put it down? What would the governors have done, what calls upon Jefferson Davis would have been made to send help to home! Would desertion have increased as men found their families threatened? And yet, that never happened.
After the war, it was deserters from both armies who caused the great fear in the South, not freed African Americans. And we see over and over again blacks attending Confederate Veterans reunions because of their service to the Cause. Divisions between white and black appear to have been exacerbated intentionally in the late 1950’s – 60’s to the present. Unfortunately, racism exists today on both sides of the color line. For the South it is time to mend fences, time to recognize the South as a whole. When the north and globalists hurt today’s South it is all of it, not just the white portion of it. When borders are not closed, it is Southerners of all ethnicities that must accept trespass of property, the violence of drug wars, and the higher costs at the state level because the federal government is NOT doing its primary job.
The whole South fought the Union. Slave did not revolt during the war. Had 3 million slaves, or even a relatively small percentage of them, revolted during the war it could have changed the course of the war and brought it to a much quicker conclusion. The opposite occurred. The slaves, for the most part, remained loyal and even participated at the front in the armies.
So if this element of the history were to be revealed it might work to heal some of today’s wounds and possibly change attitudes. But that is not the only challenge for the new South. Like the rest of America, millions of illegal immigrants have settled in the South. And then of course, there are large numbers of Yankee immigrants who bring with them a Yankee slant.
For there to be a real revival and rebirth of the South, as a region, accommodations would have to be made to include and assimilate different cultures. If this issue is not addressed and considered, the new South would continue the problems created by America’s century’s old hodge - podge immigration policy. At its core, the South would still retain its Christian anglo – celtic traditions though somewhat diminished by the absorption and inclusion of so many other cultures. Some in the Southern movement have real problems with this reality.
In the ante bellum era the South was strong because of the living and working relationships of its various peoples. Somehow this “Southern unity” must be recreated through equality and not submission.
Another aspect of the Cultural South must see revival. Southerners need to embrace their colors, the battle flag of the Confederacy. Too many Southerners attempt to divide the South on these colors. But what region of the nation has a single flag which represent it? Which region of America has a symbol recognized around the world as our is? And when other people across the planet see our colors what do they think? Racism? No. They see defiance of tyranny, and a willingness to fight for independence. Look what flag was present when the Berlin Wall fell! Which flag was it that was flown in Afghanistan as the Russians were chased out of the nation?
The Confederate battle flag is a symbol as well known as the Golden arches of McDonald’s or the Star of the Dallas Cowboys. Where commercial enterprises have spent billions to create worldwide recognized symbols, the battle flag has no money behind its recognition. Only the blood and valor of our Southern ancestors is the investment for this symbol of the South. These colors must be re-embraced by all in the South.
The Southern national anthem must reclaim its place at events across the South. This snappy, optimistic song has only one home. It is Southern. And each time it is played it re-asserts the Legacy of the region.
Reclaiming the Legacy of the South is about restoring the pride of a people, the independence of people and the willingness by all, on all sides in the South to make this region of the nation the engine to rebuild America in the twenty first century.
Summation
As you can see from this brief and incomplete presentation, there will be a lot of work to revive a Southern Legacy, a modern version. Looking at it, it seems so daunting, so large that no one could possible achieve it in a hundred years. And yet, as Christians we know the power of our God, and that all happens in His time. So it is possible, and it can happen faster than we could ever imagine if it be His will and His time.
The question is will you pray on this? Will you consider it? Will you talk to others about it?
What happened in Memphis is neither a beginning, nor an end. If we do nothing these won’t be the last parks renamed, or the last time the South will endure embarrassment. And if we do determine to commence a real campaign and do the work in the political arena it still will be decades before things may change.
I have done what I have been given to do.
Respectfully,
Mark Vogl
posted by Chuck Demastus at
11:14 PM
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