MURFREESBORO – Southerners have plenty to celebrate about their culture and heritage beyond their past Confederate history.

Since the Confederate flag came down from a monument at the grounds of the South Carolina Capitol, I’ve spotted at least two of those flags flying on display at the back of pickup trucks in Murfreesboro as if the drivers were following Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee’s order to lead the unsuccessful Pickett’s Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg.

Confederates lost that battle decisively and went on to lose the Civil War, or what they like to call the War between the States.

Their cause may have seemed noble to them, but Rutherford County Mayor Ernest Burgess was right in recently describing that cause as being misguided. The mayor went on to tell me in an interview that it’s important that we recognize history, learn from the mistakes in the past and treat all people with respect and dignity.

What’s noble about defending the institution of slavery? What’s noble about one’s wealth being based on owning slaves to provide labor for plantations? What’s noble about defining a slave as three-fifths of a person for political representation purposes for the South but never liberating that slave and giving him the right to vote and live as a free man instead of treating him like prized property?

What’s noble about seceding from the United States of America after the election of President Abraham Lincoln, who led the effort to preserve the Union, and ultimately, bring an end to slavery? What’s noble about being rebels in a war that led to 620,000 troops dying while serving both sides?

Long after the defeat of the Confederacy, that battle flag came back as a symbol of white Southern pride during the middle of the 20th century to defend segregation when national leaders were seeking to integrate Major League Baseball, our military, our public schools, our lunch counters and many other places where people gather.

Now here we are in the 21st century mourning how an accused white gunman killed nine black worshipers at a church in Charleston, South Carolina, the state where the Civil War started. The accused young gunman was known to identify with the Confederate flag and express racist sympathies.

South Carolina lawmakers responded by removing the Confederate flag from their Capitol grounds long after Gen. Lee surrendered to Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant.

Yet those Confederate flags are still on display from the back of those pickup trucks and at least one house I’ve seen in Rutherford County. Fortunately, I’ve seen far more U.S. flags decorating the homes and yards throughout the county from folks seeking to express their patriotic loyalty to our country.

If you want to take pride in Southern heritage, why not look at the music from this region? Think about all that jazz that came out of New Orleans. Think about the blues from the Mississippi Delta. Think about the sounds of rock ’n’ roll.

Many experts will tell you that those sounds first came from talented black musicians, songwriters and singers in the South. Think about country music and bluegrass. Think about gospel and Christian music. Again, much of these celebrated sounds come out of the South.

When it comes to Southern heritage, my wife told me she thinks about banana pudding and pecan pie. Born and raised in Texas near southwest Louisiana, my wife has learned well how to make both of those desserts, as well as a delicious pot of shrimp gumbo.

The South is also known for its fried catfish and chicken, seafood from the Gulf and much of the Atlantic coast; and barbecue ribs and pulled pork from Memphis, the Carolinas, and other states; and brisket from Texas.

The South, too, has its share of celebrated authors, including Nobel Prize winner William Faulkner, Pulitzer Prize winner Harper Lee for “To Kill a Mockingbird” and best-selling legal thriller writer John Gresham.

College football fans in the South can also tout their numerous national championship teams.

So the South has much to boast about when it comes to its heritage.

As for me, I’ve lived most of my life, 34-plus years out of 53, in the South after growing up in the Chicago area in the land of Lincoln and later the home of President Barack Obama. And I’ll admit that I cheered for the Chicago Blackhawks, the team I rooted for as a child, to defeat the Nashville Predators on the way to winning a third Stanley Cup in six years this year.

Perhaps I qualify as one of those “Damn Yankees” who moved down South and stayed. I can get away with saying I’m a Southern native who was born in Virginia and spent the first two years of my life there not far from where Robert E. Lee’s home was located at what today is Arlington National Cemetery for veterans. But I’ll admit that’s Yankee turf outside Washington, and I was raised by parents from up North who met in New York City long before they moved their family in 1980 to Florida, the state where I met my Southern wife in 1990.

I’ve seen many reasons why folks should feel good about living in the South. And they don’t need a Confederate flag for a misguided, lost cause to show the sides of Southern heritage and culture that celebrates and honors all folks.


Read or Share this story: