I’ve recently been reading a book about the 1850s. All this reminds me very strongly of the “code of silence” around the evils of slavery.
Polite people weren’t supposed to bring it up, as it would only inflame controversy and make peace between the sections more difficult. In fact, for decades petitions against slavery were not allowed to even be presented to Congress, pretty much in direct violation of the Constitution.
Pro-slavery extremists reacted extremely violently, even on the floor of Congress, when the plain truth was told about their “peculiar institution.”
Uncle Tom’s Cabin played an enormous role in destroying the code of silence. Unfortunately, just as the polite people predicted, open discussion of the issue led directly to civil war.
Sometimes tellling the truth really does lead to violence. Doesn’t mean we should allow the extremists veto power over telling the truth.
Now you've done it. We may end up fighting the Civil War/War Between the States/War of Northern Aggression all afternoon.