How do you feel about commeorating Benedict Arnold?
How many Union generals deserted to the Confederate side in the midst of combat operations while bearing valuable intelligence information and demanded commissions in the Confederate army?
On the grounds of the United States Military Academy at West Point there are plaques commemorating all of the generals that served in the Revolution. One plaque bears only a rank and a date (”major general...born 1740”) but no name.
A historical marker in Danvers, Massachusetts commemorates Arnold’s 1775 expedition to Quebec. There are also historical markers bearing Arnold’s name in Moscow, Maine, on the western bank of Lake Champlain, New York, and two in Skowhegan, Maine.
The house where Arnold lived at 62 Gloucester Place in central London bears a plaque describing Arnold as an “American Patriot.”
I can see the point of those who want to remove Lee's and Jackson's portraits. And at first I agreed with that. Because, like Arnold, Lee and Jackson did take up arms against the United States Army.
But here's the difference. Arnold deserted to the British for base and selfish reasons. There was no honor in his actions. I think even Arnold himself would have admitted to that.
But no one can sensibly call Lee or Jackson dishonorable men. They were rebels, but they really thought the were doing the right and proper thing for their people.
So this Northerner thinks that the Lee and Jackson portraits should remain.