Reason: Frederick Douglass vs. the 1619 Project

[VIDEO] Frederick Douglass is a former slave who became an abolitionist and he believed in our constitution and in individual rights. Would he be incredibly shocked to learn that racial justice is more about group think or group identity than respecting individual rights?

Also I've never known Douglass was in conflict with anyone until now. Douglass' rival was one between either William Lloyd Garrison another abolitionist or George Fitzhugh who's a slavery apologist. 

In the above Reason video, we see the various ways that Douglass differs with the 21st century's 1619 project. I wish we could see Douglass attempt to tear it to shreds.

Prager U: Why the three-fifths compromise was anti-slavery

[VIDEO] A question that probably was never answered to my satisfaction. Is the three-fifths compromise in the US Constitution (Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3) referring to slaves and calling them three-fifths of a person? Or are they saying three-fifths of the population of slaves?

Former political science professor Carol Swain attempts to explain in this video from Prager U. Perhaps very close to the previous video about whether or not slavery was the cause of the Civil War. In the case of the video above, it was shown that there was an eventual path to elimination slavery in America.

Think about it, slaves didn't have many rights - especially voting rights - so why should census takers count them all and allow the south to get the representation to maintain slavery. If the northern states wanted to eliminate slavery and the south had little issue continuing it or even expanding it then we see how this compromise insured that this inhuman system wouldn't last beyond the unfortunate Civil War of the 1860s.

Prager U: Was the Civil War About Slavery?

[VIDEO] Almost 3 years ago Col. Ty Seidule - professor of history at West Point - does a video for Prager U about whether or not the Civil War was over the slavery question. He argues that it was, and I know many who would disagree with that. Though I could agree that slavery was one of many reasons that we had a war between the states.

Worst still the Union victory might have legally ended slavery in the reunited United States of America. Problem is we're still dealing with a variety of racial issues that still remained unresolved at the end of the war. We still had the Jim Crow period which basically ended with the civil rights activism of the 1950s and 1960s. And race is still a dicey subject today in the 21st century.

Even worse it seems a form of  "reverse racism" is on the rise. It's seems backwards we had been fighting singling out a race of people for inferiority. Now the trend is singling out a race of people for their so-called privilege. Case in point "Failed Democrat Candidate Saira Rao Has ‘Given Up on White People’"

WOW!

h/t Newsalert!

Since we were talking about Abraham Lincoln...

Especially since Steven Spielberg's Lincoln is currently in cinemas across the nation, we remember the Emancipation Proclamation. 150 years ago it was an executive order issued by President Lincoln that proclaimed that slaves that were held in the territory controlled by the Confederate States of America were freed. Now granted Confederate held territory not under the control of the Union this order didn't have any effect. It was on Confederate territory that were held by Union forces during the Civil War where this order took effect.

I'm only noting that because there are those out there who continue to argue that President Lincoln never freed any slaves. Surely there are others out there who are better able to argue that position that I'm able to at the moment.

In looking for materials on this subject I found this Forbes posting that asked one question, "150 Years After The Emancipation Proclamation, Are We Free?" It isn't so much an article that talks about equality amongst various "minority" groups in America as much as it is a philosophical argument about the freedom of the individual and its relationship with government. It notes the positives of the Proclamation even if while a segment of America's population were no longer enslaved they still had to fight for their freedom years after that fact.

Also you can read an article about the Proclamation courtesy of the Nation Archives.

Finally, I got a chance to see "Lincoln"

On Christmas Eve I finally had a chance to see Skyfall, the lastest James Bond effort. On New Year's Eve I finally had a chance to see Steven Spielberg's Lincoln. This needs to become a recurring tradition!

Lincoln could be a film in the same vein as say The American President - well aside from the romantic comedy aspects it's still a film that involves politics. I also have compared Lincoln to The West Wing TV series. They all did tackle some issues that were important to the eras that they had been set in.

In the case of Lincoln it was slavery and the Civil War. Basically what we saw in this film was President Abraham Lincoln securing the votes in Congress for the 13th Amendment. Not only that he also had to contend with ending the Civil War. In fact news of representatives coming from the Confederate States of America wanting to talk about the end of the war figured in the political machinations of enacting an amendment to the US Constitution to abolish slavery.

We also learned more about the other players involved other than Lincoln. Many members of Congress - Representatives & Senators - played a role in making the 13th Amendment a reality. Just like the effort it took to make many of today's policy objectives a reality. For example look no further than "Obamacare" as one example of many.

Granted it's not the most exciting movie to watch. There's only one scene of the movie that was action packed which is mainly of Black soldiers fighting against the Confederate army. Then there's a scene that shows the bombardment of a Southern city although we didn't see anyone in that scene. It's a movie for the history buffs and President Lincoln (portrayed by Daniel Day-Lewis) does come alive for us in this movie as well as the many other players in this drama!

When I came to see this movie again at River East there was a packed theater to see this movie. This movie and Skyfall has been out since November and people are still coming to see it. Spielberg must have done something right for it to have the appeal it does. :)

Portion of Virginia slave burial site saved

Defender:

A portion of a 250-year-old burial ground for slaves and freed Negroes that now lies beneath a parking lot will be preserved and recognized as part of the city of Richmond, Va.’s effort to confront its slave-trading history. The 50-by-100-foot section of the former Burial Ground for Negroes had been destined to continue as a parking lot under the ownership of Virginia Commonwealth University.

However, VCU, which earlier this summer faced protests over its failure to recognize the burial ground, has changed its mind. VCU recently announced an agreement with the Richmond Slave Trail Commission to preserve that section of its parking lot for a future memorial and quit parking cars in that section.

The university has blocked off the portion of the parking lot identified with the burial ground, but is parking cars on the rest of the property that it bought earlier this year. No timetable has been given for development of the memorial. The commission is taking charge of that effort. A panel created by the city is developing a series of historic stops to illustrate Richmond’s robust role in the slave trade and this would be one.

Between 1808 and 1865, the city was the second largest slave auction site in the nation. The burial ground lies just north of the former site of Lumpkin’s Slave Jail, which is part of the trail and where the commission is undertaking an archaeological dig. Before the Civil War, the jail, dubbed the Devil’s Half-Acre, was the largest holding pen for slaves. After the war, Lumpkin’s became the initial site for a school for newly freed slaves that eventually became Virginia Union University.

The burial ground was used from around 1750 to around 1812, after which the city approved a new cemetery for Negro Richmond residents further north. According to the state history agency, Interstate 95 was built over the main portion of the burial grounds, while the asphalt parking lot seals 10 feet or more of fill that has accumulated since the last person was interred.

This aspect of American history should be preserved. The early slaves were important in building this great nation. At the same time, there is an unfortunate legacy to remember about slavery. Especially the racism and the inhumanity. All the more reason why slave burial grounds should be treated the same way as an Indian burial ground or anything like that.

House’s slavery apology rebuked, called a ‘stunt’

In some respects, I feel the same way. This is just a way for someone to feel better about who knows what and continue to neglect important issues to a particular group. Defender:

An official apology for slavery and Jim Crow from the U.S. House of Representatives provoked mixed emotions in Philadelphia recently.

For J. Whyatt Mondesire, president of the Philadelphia Chapter of the NAACP, the apology was a publicity stunt.

“It’s too late, too little,” said Mondesire. “It was a stunt.”

Emphasizing that he was speaking personally and not for the NAACP, he continued by saying that a more appropriate gesture would be “a serious conversation about reparations. But I don’t think that will happen.” The House formally apologized to African Americans and their ancestors for slavery July 29.

The House of Representatives acted alone with the Senate remaining silent.

For Karen Warrington, a spokeswoman for Rep. Bob Brady, the vote was a first step.

“I think that the vote was a step in the right direction and that America has to acknowledge the evils of slavery,” said Warrington, she was speaking personally, not as Brady’s representative.

If the apology opens a dialogue on slavery and its evils, then it will have been a good thing.

You know I was with Mr. Mondesire until he had to mention reparations. Yeah we should discuss that, especially the fairness of it. Who should pay reparations? Who should be responsible for this unfortunate institution or practice in American history? For me to support reparations those are some answers I would like to see.

I found a treasure this evening

I found a website called Voices from the Days of Slavery that has digital recordings of former slaves. Right now I'm listening to the interview of a George Johnson from Mound Bayou, Mississippi back in Sept. 1941. Very interesting and somewhat eerie for me and only because for some reason I never imagined that someone would have thought to make a phonograph oral history recording. Hearing the cracking and skipping of a record. It was really great to hear this aspect of American history.

Arkansas gov not ready to apologize for slavery

This has been in the news a lot lately. Southern states making moves mulling over whether or not they should make a resolution of apology for slavery. To be honest I would wonder what is the point of engaging in such an act. It is mostly symbolic afterall.

It should be noted that Alabama has apologized for slavery. Virginia was discussing it. In fact, I blogged about how a member of the Virginia legislature made the news when he said that blacks and Jews "develop thicker skins" over the past injustices of slavery or the holocaust.

Well some states are hesitating over this, now add Arkansas to the mix. Link is to a Sun-Times article.