I have family from that area. The old families that haven’t been broken up and scattered to the wind maintain the memories of their ancestors and what they did and what happened on their land. The memories of the depredations on the families who’s men were off to the war are especially remembered. If it’s ‘New Speak’ to say knowledge of the past is ignorance and learning lessons from that knowledge is backwards then so be it (or is that Soviet?(recycled 50s joke there)).
So you are saying that the word “union” evokes family memories from a war fought over 150 years ago...?
...and your family doesn’t understand the difference between a workers union and a faction of the civil war....
Okey dokey...