American history Americans don't know--and don't want to know

There is a terrific article at Alternet now virtually all Americans should read but that few will: "Why the White South Is Still in Denial About Slavery" On a trip through the South, Civil War culture is presented as "authentic." They just leave out the slavery part. Please trust me when I say that first, it's good and second, it's important we know this history. It's a great, far from dry read. too. Link: http://www.alternet.org/teaparty/153598/why_the_white_south_is_still_in_denial_about_slavery/?page=1. Another great and associated article: What You Didn't Know About the South: Surprises from a White Southerner “The South” is an idea too often wrapped in a fog that emanates from the left as well as the right. Link: http://www.alternet.org/culture/153608/What_You_Didn%27t_Know_About_the_South%3A_Surprises_from_a_White_Southerner/

Quote of the day

"When the Civil War ended, there were no truth and reconciliation commissions formed to process memories, no Nuremberg Trials to enable reflection, no Great Emancipator to free the future from the past — only ghosts and the ravenous politics of memory. The need for national reckoning was quickly subordinated to the political imperative of reunification, and on both sides of the Mason-Dixon line, forgetting became more valuable than remembering." --Peter Birkenhead, from his article "Why the White South Is Still in Denial About Slavery" on Alternet. Link: http://www.alternet.org/teaparty/153598/why_the_white_south_is_still_in_denial_about_slavery/

Could we stop this?

 

I mean, after all, they did lose.