White Lies: Part One: A Foundation for Lies

Monuments to the “lost cause” will prove monuments of folly, both in the memories of a wicked rebellion which they must necessarily perpetuate, and in the failure to accomplish the particular purpose had in view by those who build them.

Contrary to all evidence—including the traumatic memories that haunted the formerly enslaved and the lash marks that scarred so many of their bodies—proponents of this false narrative claimed that slavery had been conducted in a humane and thoughtful way.

This system provided an easy way for people like Junkin to find help while allowing enslavers to monetize the skills of the people they claimed as their property, just as someone might collect rent by sharing a dwelling that they owned.

LIE #2: White men were models of chivalry during the antebellum era.

Southern White leaders revived the states’ rights argument after the 1954 Supreme Court ruling of Brown v. Board of Education ordered the integration of the nation’s public schools.

On June 5, 1865, while imprisoned, he wrote in his diary, “It is proper for me to state that that speech was extemporaneous. The reporter’s notes, which were very imperfect, were hastily corrected by me; and were published without further revision and several glaring errors.”

Moore reported that traffickers had assembled mobs to heckle Unionists at the convention and were buying up newspapers across the state so that their readers would begin to see anti-union articles.

He regarded Lincoln’s move to defend the fort in South Carolina an “arrogant and infamous usurpation of power.”

This glorification allowed for a face-saving embrace of returning soldiers: Veterans could be welcomed home as heroes, not failures.

After serving his country dutifully for thirty–two years, Lee had finally advanced to the rank of full colonel and been placed at the head of a prestigious cavalry regiment.

Confederates would almost certainly confiscate everything they left behind: his family’s land, their various homes, personal possessions, the funds that remained in local banks, and the enslaved workers he continued to manage on behalf of the Custis estate.

David Hunter advanced on Lexington to retaliate against VMI for its participation in the battle.

Before a single Black soldier could be placed into Confederate ranks, Robert E. Lee was confronted by the South’s imminent defeat.

Unlike U.S. fighters interred on the property, though, these combatants lay in untended graves marked with the label of rebel.

Many came from prominent families in their communities and had the education, skills, resources, and gumption to act effectively.