In February 1996, the Museum of the Confederacy, located in Richmond, Virginia, held a fund-raising ball celebrating its centennial and invited participants to come in black tie or period clothing. This created a controversey that launched a televised face-off between former Gov. Douglas L. Wilder, a grandson of slaves, and Robin Reed, the museum's director. Wilder drew comparison between Confederate soldiers and Nazi prison camp guards. Reed said the ball was a non-political event, designed to raise money and attract a younger audience. Denunciations and affirmations piled up, and the publicity swelled participants in the event. To some critics, it...