Posted on 04/18/2014 3:41:38 AM PDT by Altura Ct.
After the Civil War, Robert E. Lee accepted a position as president of what was then called Washington College. By all accounts, he served the school well and had a nice end of life. After his death, Washington College was renamed Washington & Lee.
Today, many black people attend the university that bears Marse Robert’s surname, so I guess we won. But a group of black law students at Washington & Lee Law School is getting really sick of the university’s consistent, stars-and-bars waving support of Lee’s legacy and the whitewashing (no pun intended) of what that legacy represents.
They’ve got a list of some very specific “demands” for the Washington & Lee administration…
On the one hand, I’m kind of surprised that black students at Washington & Lee are just now threatening “civil disobedience” over the school’s longstanding remembrance of the Confederate cause. The thing is called Washington & Lee, not Washington & GRANT. I mean, here’s a line taken right from the school’s “about” page on its website:
Founded in 1749, Washington and Lee University is named for two of the most influential men in American history: George Washington, … and Robert E. Lee, whose presidency and innovative leadership brought the University into the national limelight.
Right… the two “of the most” influential individuals are George Washington and Robert E. Lee. Not Washington and Abraham Lincoln. Not even Washington and John C. Calhoun… you know, the guy who came up with the whole, bollocks secessionist legal reasoning. But Washington and Robert E. “I’d rather fight for my state than combat a great evil for my country” Lee. Lee’s logic is akin to me fighting the Orkin Man because the “New York City” rats shouldn’t be subjugated to a “national” company, but whatever.
Again, black people could have probably known what kind of university they were getting involved with when they applied to Washington & Lee, but if you want to know what’s pissing the black law students off, I can begin to explain in a picture:
Now, I don’t know if a tomb to a dead general crosses that intangible line from historical preservation to offensive nostalgia. But when you couple those traditions with other things black law students at W&L are complaining about, you can understand their problem. Here is a list of demands from a group of black law students calling themselves “The Committee”:
Here is a list of the FOUR DEMANDS:
1. We demand that the University fully recognize Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on the undergraduate campus.
2. We demand that the University stop allowing neo-confederates to march on campus with confederate flags on Lee-Jackson Day.
3. We demand that the University immediately remove all confederate flags from its property and premises, including those flags located within Lee Chapel.
4. We demand that the University issue an official apology for the University’s participation in chattel slavery, including a denunciation of General Robert E. Lee’s participation in slavery.
If the school does not act by SEPTEMBER 1, 2014 we WILL engage in civil disobedience.
Really, this is a Confederate Battle Flag issue. To me, it’s a symbol of racial oppression. To others, it’s a symbol of Southern pride. My question to the Southern Pride people is always: what about all the black Southerners? Are they not allowed to be “prideful” of their Southern roots as well? Or are they supposed to wave around a Confederate flag in support of their “state’s rights”?
I contacted Washington & Lee about the controversy. Here is the school's statement:
We have received communication from the group of law students who signed the letter and have responded by inviting invited them to engage in serious discussions about the issues that they have raised.
The question of cancelling classes on MLK Day has been discussed on several recent occasions. The law school does not hold classes that day. Any decision on changing the University's undergraduate calendar rests with the undergraduate faculty, which approves academic calendars and adjustments to the class schedule. Washington and Lee does recognize Martin Luther King Jr. each year with a university-wide MLK Legacy Week during the week of MLK Day. This annual observance features a prominent guest speaker. Recent examples are Donna Brazile, Andrew J. Young, and Julian Bond. In addition, panels, symposia and programs are available not only for the university community but also for the Lexington/Rockbridge County community. We have chosen to honor Dr. King's legacy in this way.
In terms of the other issues that the students have raised, we will give them all careful consideration
Yay. Washington & Lee has black friends, so it's all good.
Look, in terms of Washington & Lee, sure George Washington was a slaveholder too. And if W&L is using that flag in order to honor slavery, well, go nuts. But let's just remember that Washington — the Washington who fought and froze and bled for this country, the Washington who was our first federal president under our constitution — would probably roll over in his marble grave to know that a REBEL flag was displayed so prominently at a university that bears his name.
Whatever you think the Confederacy was about, it most certainly involved a violent rebellion against a duly elected president led by people who had the right to vote but could not achieve their political motives through the agreed upon process. The Founding Fathers wanted representation. The Confederates wanted to get their way, regardless of what "voters" wanted in new territories. You think Washington would wave a flag for that?
Washington & Lee has two people in its name, maybe it's time to start listening for the echoes of the other guy.
The undergraduate school is apparently under pressure from some to close down for MLK day. My question was should Howard be subject to the same type demand?
The Founding Fathers wanted representation. The Confederates Liberals/Socialists wanted to get their way, regardless of what "voters" wanted in new territories.
The Founding Fathers wanted representation. The Confederates Conservatives wanted to get their way, regardless of what "voters" wanted in new territories.
Hmmm.
My sneaking suspicion is that the whole Howard University does not hold classes on MLK day. But if you're still on the other holiday then as I pointed out since Confederate Memorial Day is not observed in D.C. then the answer should be no.
According to the article, W and L does not observe either. So again the question remains the same.
Yes and no. Undergraduate school recognizes MLK day through a week of activities but does not cancel classes on that day. The law school does, I assume, participate in those activities and it cancels classes on the holiday. And at the risk of stating the obvious, MLK day is a federal holiday recognized in all 50 states and D.C. Confederate Memorial day is not a federal holiday, has no single month in which it is celebrated much less a single day, and is recognized in only 11 states. D.C. is not one of them.
Of course my original question was whether a school more aligned with non-Southern traditions be expected to accommodate student requests at variance with the status quo.
People cannot accept the fact that the “Demands” are a direct attack on our history and traditions. Northern whites came to terms with Southern Civil war leaders long ago. Their side was incorporated into our view of America. The Civil War became a great drama. Today, white administrators do not have the spiritual courage to tell the so called “students” no.
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