Via Carl
Now the Museum of the Confederacy and the American Civil War Center
are joining forces to build a $30 million museum in Richmond with the
goal of creating the top Civil War museum in the nation 150 years after
the deadliest conflict fought on U.S. soil.
The marriage of museums, announced to The Associated Press, will meld
the collection of Confederate battle flags, uniforms, weapons and other
historic relics with a narrative-based museum that uses bold,
interactive exhibits and living history events to relate its 360-degree
telling of the war.
What some might view as an unlikely partnership "makes so much sense"
to Christy Coleman, president of the American Civil War Center, which
opened in 2000 at a site where the new museum will rise.
"That's part of the point," Coleman said in an interview with The
Associated Press. "They have an incredible collection that is absolutely
Confederate strong, but there are a lot of artifacts that have not been
able to be fully explored or used to relate to the African-American
experience or immigrants or the role of Jews."
*******************************
Rev. Fr. Alister C. Anderson
Ten East Third Street
Frederick, Maryland
October 5, 2007
Dear Mr.Rawls:
I
have been a member of the Museum of the Confederacy for many years and
I am happy to hear you state that ''We will not abandon Richmond." I
am, however, disappointed to read some statements you made in a letter I
received dated 9 September 2007. In the third paragraph, I am sorry
you used the words "Civil War." I need not define to you -the words
"Civil War." You must know that our war was the War for Southern
Independence; the War of Northern Aggression; the War Between the
States. Take your pick, Mr.Rawls, but do not say "Civil War."
When
you write in your letter, "... when we say the Pledge of Allegiance to
the American Flag, the phrase 'indivisible, with liberty and justice
for all' rings in our ears,".. .and we're the products of the crucible
of our own internal conflict," I must insist that these words are not
the products of our own internal conflict.
These words were written
in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister who was forced to resign
his pastorate because of his Socialist sermons and political
activities.
Mr. Rawls, you should know that "our own internal
conflict" was fought to defend the Constitutional principles of States'
Rights, to free the people of the South from their economic
strangulation by the radical Republican Lincoln Administration,which
government was determined to destroy our Southern culture. Our War was
fought to prevent a rapacious Federal Government (it is not federalat
all, having repudiated in concept of federalism given to us by the
Founding Fathers) to impose its way of life and dictatorial politics and
culture upon the South.
Francis Bellamy admired the ideas of
the French Revolution. He believed that it helped men to appreciate
their personal dignity and God-given rights, to which you and I will
say "Yes," but at what a horrendous and demonic and totally unnecessary
price in blood and possessions. Through some devious political
connections he was permitted to write the Pledge of Allegiance with his
Socialist intentions to weld together the mentality of all Americans
in their allegiance to a centralized Federal Government.
For
example, the word allegiance was taken from President Lincoln's Oath of
Allegiance, which all Southerners had to take to regain citizenship,
and to admit that they were guilty of rebellious, and that they were
evil people.
Bellamy used the word indivisible to impress Southerners
that secession was a grevious sin and that they were guilty; and
especially the children were made to feel guilty that their parents
fought for freedom, independence, self-government, and the protection
of their families, houses, churches, farms and cities from destruction.
And by the way, no human political construct is ever indivisible. Only
GOD IS INDIVISIBLE! Southern scholars and historians have written that
Bellamy's idea to include "liberty and justice for all" is a
substitute phrase which he was forced to use instead of his preferred
phrase, "Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity," the atheist words of the
radical French Revolution.John Dewey admired Francis Bellamy
and we all know that Dewey, who advocated "Progressive Education,"
willingly played into the subversive agenda of the cultural Marxists.
Francis Bellamy can be linked to Dewey, who has produced a morally
corrupt, anti-Christian, multi-cultural, secular public school system
which now openly attacks traditional Christian culture.
Finally,
Mr. Rawls, the Museum of the Confederacy was designed and established
to celebrate the Confederacy and the Southern history and culture and
people who had to go to war to defend themselves. For you to say that
the museum exists to help Southerners "find an understanding -warts and
all-" is to undermine the original and true purpose of this museum.
There
are many other museums in our country which deliberately try to
impose on the South and our ancestors ugly lies about our warts and
all We Southerners should not surrender our duty to celebrate the
Confederacy.
We have an understanding of what the war was all about. .
If
I were in your position as President and CEO of the Museum of the
Confederacy, I would place on the most visible place in the museum the
immortal words of General Stephen D. Lee:
"To you, sons of
Confederate Veterans, we submit the vindication of the Cause for which
we fought. To your strength will be given the defense of the
Confederate soldier's good name, the guardianship of history, the
emulation of his virtues, the perpetuation of those principles he loved
and which made him glorious and which you also cherish. Remember it is
your duty to
see that the true history of the South is presented to future generations."
With best wishes for you in your care of OUR museum,
I am,
Sincerely yours,
The Rev.Fr.Alister C. Anderson
Chaplain (Colonel) U.S.Army (Ret.)
Past Chaplain-in-Chief
Sons of Confederate Veterans
**********************************************************
My letter to the Honorable Mr. Sam Carter, Board
of Supervisors, Appomattox County, Va. You may wish to do something
similar. Here is the gentlemans email address: sam.carter@appomattoxcountyva.gov
Dear Supervisor Carter,
I
hope you are well. I wish to make you aware of some rather disturbing
events that have taken place at the Museum of the Confederacy. I am the
president of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. We have been around
since 1896 and have around 31,000 members today. My organization has
been keenly interested in the Museum of the Confederacy for as long as
we have been in existence. In the past the museum has been a grand
defender of the Southern plight to gain self-government and has been
used to tell the story of our common ancestors.
Unfortunately,
lately, and under the direction of Mr. Waite Rawls, the museum has
taken a turn to the north. Recently Mr. Rawls attempted an effort to
rid the museum's name of the word "Confederacy." He received much
resistance from the community and he reversed his efforts (for now).
With the new museum in your backyard he is once again senselessly
fanning the flames of discontent. It boggles the minds of many a
Southerner as to why there is to be NO Confederate flag flying outside
of The Museum of the Confederacy.
There is a great deal of angst
over this situation and my membership, joined by many others, is
incensed. I bring this matter to you today because I know of your love
for your community and I hope we share a common bond with our noble
past. I would like to see the Museum a success that would not only
benefit the truthful history of our region but bring prosperity to your
fair city. Two weeks ago, with this same motivation, I called Mr.
Rawls to speak with him about these present concerns. We spent over
three hours on the phone over the weekend. I know that many people will
be determined to see a flag fly outside of the museum and many will
make their feelings known by protesting outside of the museum. I
pleaded with Mr. Rawls to take action to divert this otherwise
unnecessary disruption. But he only gave me weak excuses of not even
considering their requests. He told me that your office would be
"furious if he put a Confederate flag outside." He told me that the
Mayor would be very upset, then he told me that his investors informed
him that if he did anything controversial then they would withdraw their
funds. With so many stories, I don't know what to believe therefore I
am to believe none of it.
Due to Mr. Rawls past views of the
symbols of the Confederacy and his apparent agenda to pander to the
politically-correct and the northern dollar, I lean toward the notion
that it is Mr. Rawls and Mr. Rawls alone that wish for no Confederate
flag to fly outside of the Museum of the Confederacy.
I could
have helped resolve this problem long ago, but Mr. Rawls does not see
fit to have the opinion of the largest and most respected heritage
organization at their table to discuss matters so vitally important to
us and our fellow Southerners.
I ask you today to help us change
the mind of Mr. Rawls and let's find an amenable solution. If you have
any questions, please do not hesitate to call. I am most,
Respectfully yours,
Michael Givens
Commander-in-Chief
Sons of Confederate Veterans
(931) 442-1831
http://scv.org/
