Are you also appalled by the fact that historical re-enactment societies conduct Civil War battle enactments? And that actual real live Black people participate, because they are history buffs and enthusiasts, too? That is what these Plantation enactment weddings are like. Even the guests must wear historically accurate attire, at the better done ones. They are not glorifying slavery, they are preserving history, and often raising money to preserve historic places and buildings as an additional aspect of the wedding experience. Since a huge swath of the South was burned down during Sherman's very necessary march to end the Civil War, few of these places are left in a lot of states. In Atlanta, for example, one - 1 - pre-war home was left standing, Wren's Nest, at Sherman's specific orders.
If we sweep history under the rug because it offends our sensibilities, then as the saying goes, perhaps we doom ourselves to repeat it, especially the bad parts. If we are unable to forgive the use of an offensive word under any circumstance and to the point that the offender must be essentially banned from society, then clearly, the Civil War never ended. Paula Deen admitted under oath that she utter that forbidden word, thirty years ago, when she worked at a bank that was robbed at gunpoint. If she experienced the kind of terror and outrage that I did when I was robbed at gunpoint, then I wish you would let her off the noose about it. I only meant it as the most hateful thing I could think of to say at THAT MAN, the man who violated my safety with a weapon for no good reason. I hated THAT MAN, the one who just robbed me and terrorized me. I also immediately felt guilty about saying that word. It is a hateful and fateful and powerful word when said in anger and with loathing, even if only meant for a single individual.
