We must post up 10 more monuments: Challenging the Historical Imaginary of the Confederacy with Truth

We must post up 10 more monuments: Challenging the Historical Imaginary of the Confederacy with Truth
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In the early 1970s when I was a young girl growing up in Jacksonville, Florida, my brothers and I had a sleepover at my grandparent’s new home. It was a big, beautiful Victorian-style home on 10th Street, and we were joining them during their first night under its elegant, Mansard-crafted roof. As kids, we were especially delighted with the Amish Swing on the front porch, so that’s where we spent most of that evening before heading off to bed. But our delight with the swing and the porch turned to horror and tears when we awoke the next morning to see the letters “KKK” burned into their front yard. We were old enough to know that what we saw were not “just letters”; they were symbols of something dark, vile and hateful.

Like those letters, symbols of the Confederacy are not “just symbols”; they too, stand for something dark, vile and hateful. To be sure, they are clear representations of warped beliefs in white supremacy and the evils of slavery. Historical documents prove this.

If the preservation of history is what truly concerns those who argue to maintain public placement of these symbols, there must be an equal concern for “truth” about that history. There is no history where there is no truth. But, there is a way to tell the truth, and the whole truth, about this period of American history.

If the truth will be told, more memorials must be created. These new memorials must honor the many heroic African Americans who courageously fought with the Union Army to win the war against their would-be captors. After all, these men and women, and the thousands who fought along-side them, are the true victors and patriots.

Historical Truths:

· Over 179,000 black soldiers served in the Union Army.

· Thousands of black men voluntarily formed unofficial regiments to support Union forces prior to their official admittance into the military in 1863.

· 16 Black soldiers were awarded Congressional Medals of Honor for heroism during the Civil War.

· To be black and fight against the Confederacy took extraordinary courage, and it meant risking “execution on the spot” if captured (e.g., The Fort Pillow Massacre).

· Over 600,000 men died in 384 battles before the Confederates surrendered to the Union in 1865.

Below are profiles of 10 black men and women whose memorials deserve prominent placement in public squares throughout the United States.

1. Sergeant Powhatan Beaty (American Hero, Civil War Hero, born into slavery)

Powhatan Beaty initially joined an unarmed, voluntary unit of men who fought against the Confederate. Eventually, Beaty enlisted in the Union army, became a Sergeant, and commanded over 40 men. He received the Congressional Medal of Honor after demonstrating immense courage when he ran into enemy fire to retrieve and hoist the U.S. Flag during the Battle of Chaffin’s Farm.

2. Captain Andre Cailloux (American Hero, Civil War Hero, born into slavery)

Andre Cailloux was one of the first African American Captains to be killed in combat against the Confederates. In May 1863, he led the 1st Regiment’s “Colored Company” into battle during what would lead to devastating losses of life at Port Hudson in Louisiana. Despite the losses, Cailloux’s exhibition of brave and courageous leadership would become legendary and serve to bolster widespread confidence in the readiness of blacks for war against their would-be captors.

3. William H. Carney (American Hero, Civil War Hero, born into slavery)

After escaping to freedom from slavery through the Underground Railroad, William H. Carney joined the Union army where he repeatedly demonstrated intense courage, resilience and loyalty. Carney’s heroism to fight and save the Union’s flag during the Battle of Fort Wagner would lead him to become the first African American to earn the Congressional Medal of Honor.

4. Corporal Decatur Dorsey (American Hero, Civil War Hero, born into slavery)

As a Corporal in the 39th Colored Infantry, Decatur Dorsey’s valor during what was known as “The Battle of the Crater” would become legendary. As the Battle progressed, Dorsey would lead his troops twice into combat against Confederate forces. Eventually, his 39th Infantry would engage in hand-to-hand combat to capture nearly 200 prisoners. Dorsey was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroism.

5. Sergeant James Daniel Gardiner (American Hero, Civil War Hero)

James Daniel Gardiner enlisted as a private in the 36th Colored Regiment, but he was promoted to Sergeant following his heroism during the renowned Battle of Chaffin’s Farm. Determined to fight his enemies to the death, Gardiner engaged a Confederate officer in lethal hand-to-hand combat. His heroics would earn him the Congressional Medal of Honor.

6. William A. Jackson (American Hero, Civil War Hero, born into slavery)

Prior to his escape from slavery in 1861 and during a period when blacks were not allowed to serve in the war, William A. Jackson used his place in the home of Confederate President Jefferson Davis to serve as a spy for the Union. After escaping slavery, Jackson met with Union commanders to share critical intelligence on Confederate strategies and tactics.

7. Corporal Miles James (American Hero, Civil War Hero)

Miles James was serving as a Corporal in the Colored 36th Union battalion when he was seriously wounded during the Battle of Chaffin’s Farm. Despite his severe injuries, the brave soldier continued to fight and support the Union’s victory. James was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.

8. Robert Smalls (American Hero, Civil War Hero, born into slavery)

After being forced to navigate a Confederate ship, Robert Smalls accomplished a miracle. He guided the ship away from the coastline while Confederate officers lay asleep onshore, disguised himself as the ship’s Captain, successfully passed through five Confederate ports, and steered the vessel into the arms of Union soldiers. Once in Union hands, Smalls gave them a codebook to support their defense against the Confederates. Smalls would later meet and persuade President Lincoln to admit blacks into the Union army; ultimately, he would become a U.S. Congressman.

9. Susie King Taylor (American Heroine, Civil War Heroine, born into slavery)

One of the few slaves who knew how to read and write, Susie King Taylor established a school for former slaves on St. Simon’s Island in Georgia before joining one of the Union’s first black regiments as a nurse. Taylor is considered the 1st black woman to serve as an army nurse. By virtue of tending the wounded amongst the troops, Taylor risked her life on a daily basis -- just as surely as each soldier risked his own.

10. Harriet Tubman (American Heroine, Civil War Heroine, born into slavery)

Most widely known for her courageous missions to help enslaved blacks maneuver the tumultuous journey of the Underground Railroad to secure their freedom, Harriet Tubman was also a spy and nurse for the Union Army. And despite the perpetual bounty on her head and lifelong ailments due to a traumatic head injury suffered at the hands of one of her former slave owners, Tubman remained an outspoken abolitionist who repeatedly risked her life for others.

These 10 men and women represent the epitome of valor, and they are among the true American heroes and heroines who deserve to be recognized in every state of this Nation. With unrelenting courage, they each risked their lives to stand and fight for their freedom, and for the principles upon which this Nation was founded

Standing alone, the Confederate statues, carvings, street signs, school monikers and flags symbolize a fallacy that fuels a distorted historical imaginary. These symbols represent fetishized bits and pieces of a “story”, only to commit lies by omission. Equally horrendous, they suggest that these men were victors and patriots when truthfully, they were not. The men of the Confederacy fought against their own nation for the political, economic, social and racist conveniences to hold men, women and children in the bondage of chattel slavery.

If monuments and symbols of the Confederacy are to remain on public display in this Nation, monuments of those heroic blacks who fought to defend the Union, safeguard their newly won freedom and win the Civil War must be posted up alongside the treasonous ones.

I am certain that none of the hundreds of thousands of Union soldiers who fought and died for this country ever imagined that centuries after their sacrifices, the enemy traitors would be honored and defended. At minimum, the true defenders of this nation deserve to have the truth, and the whole truth, made clear.

#postupmoremonuments

#blackAMERICANheroes

#blackcivilwarheroes

#notruthnohistory

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