America Get It Together and Stop Creating the New Abnormal!
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By Ron Signore
The new normal is a habit. Habits take time to create and dismantle to be open at both end of the spectrum. With practice making permanent, our remembrance of normality pre-COVID is bleak to say the least. Furthermore, because of this, each experience to what that pre-COVID normal was becomes almost like a new experience.
This past week, I spent time in Charleston, South Carolina. South Carolina is a Red State by definition, however, the historic little city is raging with Blue cries. Arriving Sunday afternoon and returning home Friday evening, I was able to make my way around the streets and imperfect, yet perfectly aged sidewalks. The architecture of the city has this amazing mixture of colonial and Civil War era feeling. The influence of Greek Revival Architecture and Victorian architecture, along with European and Caribbean influence allow for a very warm welcome that goes beyond the amazement of its beauty.
While the reason for the trip was laid out due to business, one of my colleague’s has a husband who is an author of historical nonfiction. Spending time in the city growing up due to family residing there, he was able to take us on a walking tour of historic downtown Charleston and explain landmarks and their relevance to history. Before I go any farther, the man who led this tour while hosting us in his city had to be one of the most educated and well-spoken people, I have had the luxury to spend time with. The pride and love for his city was of true southern pride, a reputation we have seen noted more and more as of late and have formed opinions on one way or another because of it. The main spotlight revolves around racism with slavery and the history of the African American and racism in this country.
As we walked along the coastline and rounded into a park erected to represent the confederacy, it was the first time in a long time that I let my love for history take over me. I didn’t let my political feelings of disdain for what it represents affect me. To this point in time, I do not know if that is a good thing or a bad thing. The ability to allow the beauty of the scenery filled with statues at a surface level was enlightening. Pieces of history, that I tend to argue the dismissal of due to what it can represent, add to the charm of the city. It is a battle I realize I should no longer partake in because while I agree the message by who and why these artifacts represent are part of an ugly history and realistic foundation for the current narrative of racism, it made me think of going to foreign lands controlled by other dynasties. We do not always know or perfect the history of other nations. That is ok. But I think of the old architecture or statues of past civilizations world-wide where the rule and social hierarchy led to the same enslavement or wrongful persecution of its population during those times.
Times have evolved and people have acted accordingly during each era of each civilization. Human rights were violated and even destroyed in so many instances to these populations. Yet, with the exception of few that we know of, many historic artifacts still remain in those areas and we travel to see them. Maybe not for what they represent, but the age and impressionism they show off.
We have a dark history that is continuously being written as the story unfolds with time. The foundations of our country as we look back on humanity and it’s history are despicable. I can only imagine what groups of people affected by our murderous history think when they walk the streets of our country, let alone the specifics of the African American walking the streets of the south with Pro-Slavery monuments present. They are part of our history, our growth, and a reminder to what we do not want our country to be. The argument that we should keep these monuments up because of the pride people feel in the south of having the confederacy, or land of dixie heritage present is the wrong one and one I would never agree with. Mainly because the confederacy represents the desire for a separated nation and whether they like it or not, a vote for slavery.
However, I would argue the history should not be destroyed. It would be better off left alone while finding a way show the history of these land marks and what they represented over time to our current population. The education and amazement of these sculptures and people they portray, whether specific or groupwise, are part of how this country got to this place. The education behind them is a fascinating one not just from the who or what perspective, but as we grow, the why perspective. Leaving them up in a sense of bragging or defending them being town down as a sense of price is the wrong approach. The appreciation of age and physical beauty, the resilience these weathered figures have endured should be here to remind us of what we came from. It should, and could, even allow for us to view as shameful and failed attempts of evil over good. The problem in my eyes rests more on the belief that the south will rise again as opposed to the failed attempt of the south to succeed from our country.
Famous tales of hanging bodies as warning to visitors to proceed with caution or a message of unwelcome rang through Charleston through the years. I have come to the belief that these historic artifacts here and elsewhere in the south should serve as a similar message to visitors. The concept of identifying the failed attempt to occupy a segregated and succeeded nation from our United States. Smaller monuments in the form of plaques should be placed to accompany to outline the tale of these horrendous historic consequences. If we are continuing to incline the removal, then we should preserve these artifacts in some sort of museum that really helps educate our future generations to the truth of the disgusting mentality of the south and the ugliness of the history it played in our nation. These things happened, and we should not forget. They should help illustrate our story and not destroyed in attempt to forget or white wash the history behind our country. I can openly and honestly say the openly conservative pride of our tour guide was the type of person who took me back to a time where a liberal and conservative could engage peacefully to coexist. He was not our typically described MAGAt and I have much respect for him. His open acknowledgement to everything we condemn about these monuments is a sign that maybe there is another approach to preserve history. Most of us in an educated position despise what these things stand for, but those of us who also love to educate see the importance of what these things stand for.
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