This should not be, and it cannot be. We cannot allow the state of Mississippi to put its stamp of approval on the memory of so odious, so miserable, so unforgivable a figure as Nathan Bedford Forrest.
As many of you may already know, Mississippi is considering a measure to put Forrest's ugly mug on a commemorative Civil War sesquicentennial license plate. This, of course, is the same Forrest who earned his considerable pre-war fortune as one of the South's most successful slave traders, who stood by as his soldiers massacred surrendered African-American troops at Fort Pillow, and who topped off his illustrious personal history as a Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.
I don't care if Shelby Foote called him one of the authentic geniuses of the Civil War. I don't care if he's slowly taking Jefferson Davis's place among the 'Holy Trinity' of the Confederacy. I don't care if he was a 'self-made man' from the hardscrabble frontier. Forrest's memory is, or should be offensive, not only to African-Americans, but to all Americans. No amount of military 'genius,' no feat or maneuver on a battlefield near or far will make Forrest anything more than what he was: a grim manifestation of America's most hateful legacy and the author of countless sorrows.
Couldn't agree with you more. Forrests's popularity is overdone. Good for you for taking this on.
I could not agree more. It is one thing to write about the military prowess of generals on both sides. It is quite another to honor a true American terrorist.
As the Civil War once again sears itself into our memory, there is plenty of room for serious scholarship. Objective, serious scholarship.
This proposed "honor" is a disgrace.
Good Lord ... Please do some OBJECTIVE historical reading and put down the public school pablum that you've been force fed all these years.
Thanks for your comment, Mike. But I'm not sure which portion of my commentary was inaccruate: Forrest's career as a slave trader, his implication in the bloodshed at Ft. Pillow, or his involvement with the Klan?
illustrious indeed. No greater Honor could be bestowed upon a true confederate hero than to be slandered by those whose opinions and actions he oppressed (through ideology and genealogy) for over 150 years. That you even have a tongue with which to voice your worthless trash is a credit to the mercy and humor which, those whom you perceive as your enemies express for your pathetic existence. allow an american hero his recognition ; said BY an american hero ( heavily decorated 5 tour SOF combat veteran of OIF and OEF) about an american hero.. YES there were MANY on the Federal side... but we're not discussing the merits of they're accolades or war crimes (petersberg) are we?
Thanks for your comments, Sam -- although I'm not sure I follow your argument. I agree that Forrest oppressed or suppressed a variety of opinions and actions -- including those of the freedmen and Union soldiers whom he massacred at Fort Pillow, as well as the men and women he and other Klansmen terrorized during the Reconstruction era. But I don't believe this makes him a hero. And I don't understand how Forrest has continued to oppress opinions and actions for 150 years (since he's been dead for more than a century) -- unless, of course, you're pointing to the continued existence of the Klan, which is hardly a praiseworthy organization.
I also don't understand how my right to speak freely is a result of the 'mercy and humor' of my 'perceived enemies'? Are you suggesting that long-dead Forrest has 'mercifully' allowed me to live and speak freely? This is strange: only moments ago I believe you were praising Forrest for his unmerciful 'oppression.'
Lastly, I would argue that, even if Forrest IS a hero (which I dispute), he must either be a Confederate hero or an American hero. He can only be one.
Honestly, Sam, I have no horse in this race. I'm not denying the reality of Union (or US) atrocities, but, then again, I'm not trying to put a Union bloodletter on a state-sponsored license plate. All I want is to keep Forrest's ugly grill off of the public face of Mississippi, and express my opinion about a man, who, as far as I can tell, was a far cry from heroism.
Thanks for your comments, Sam -- although I'm not sure I follow your argument. I agree that Forrest oppressed or suppressed a variety of opinions and actions -- including those of the freedmen and Union soldiers whom he massacred at Fort Pillow, as well as the men and women he and other Klansmen terrorized during the Reconstruction era. But I don't believe this makes him a hero. And I don't understand how Forrest has continued to oppress opinions and actions for 150 years (since he's been dead for more than a century) -- unless, of course, you're pointing to the continued existence of the Klan, which is hardly a praiseworthy organization.
I also don't understand how my right to speak freely is a result of the 'mercy and humor' of my 'perceieved enemies'? Are you suggesting that long-dead Forrest has 'mercifully' allowed me to live and speak freely? This is strange: only moments ago I believe you were praising Forrest for his unmerciful 'oppression.'
Lastly, I would argue that, even if Forrest IS a hero (which I dispute), he must either be a Confederate hero or an American hero. He can only be one.
Honestly, Sam, I have no horse in this race. I'm not denying the reality of Union (or US) atrocities, but, then again, I'm not trying to put a Union bloodletter on a state-sponsored license plate. All I want is to keep Forrest's ugly grill off of the public face of Mississippi, and express my opinion about a man, who, as far as I can tell, was a far cry from heroism.