Jefferson Davis statue looms over black history ceremony in Kentucky Capitol

The Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville, FL ^ | 24 February 2004 | Joe Biesk

[Rebeleye]

The ceremony wasn't about Kentucky's homegrown Confederate president, but about Black History Month. Rep. Paul Bather, a Louisville Democrat, pointed to the Davis statue and said it had to go...Bather, who is black, is sponsoring legislation...that would have the statue removed from the state Capitol...Likenesses of former president Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay, Dr. Ephraim McDowell and Alben Barkley are all standing in the rotunda with Davis.

[Rebeleye]

FRANKFORT, Ky. - The ceremony wasn't about Kentucky's homegrown Confederate president, but about Black History Month.

Still, Jefferson Davis' stern-looking statue loomed over a commemoration at the Capitol Rotunda on Tuesday while presenters reminisced to school children and others about historic achievements made by black people.

While recounting some of those accomplishments, Rep. Paul Bather, a Louisville Democrat, pointed to the Davis statue and said it had to go.

"Jefferson Davis fought for what he believed in. But what he believed in was wrong," Bather told the crowd. "He believed in putting people down and slavery."

Bather, who is black, is sponsoring legislation in the state House that would have the statue removed from the state Capitol and instead showcased at the Kentucky History Center. Indeed, Bather maintains, Davis has a place in history but not one of such high visibility and honor.

Likenesses of former president Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay, Dr. Ephraim McDowell and Alben Barkley are all standing in the rotunda with Davis. Lincoln, who has the largest statue, is in the middle with Davis standing in the corner behind is right shoulder.

Kentucky officially stayed neutral throughout the war and remained in the Union. However, a significant portion of the population sympathized with the Confederacy and residents fought for both sides.

Davis' statue has stood in the Rotunda since it was unveiled in 1936.

But Bather compared Davis' historical contributions to those of Saddam Hussein, saying they both oppressed people.

Davis "symbolized slavery, symbolized oppression and racism and all the bad things in society," Bather said. "Now that's no different than Saddam Hussein in my eyes. When you oppress people - whether it's in Iraq or whether it's in the United States - it has the same effect."

State Sen. Gerald Neal, also a Louisville Democrat, said he agreed with Bather's point on the statue. However, the ceremony was not intended to advance any one cause, but to remember black history as a part of U.S. history.

"The rotunda of the Capitol represents the heart of the state of Kentucky," Neal said. "And regardless who is at the heart of Kentucky, African-Americans have been there from the beginning and they will not be pushed aside."

State Rep. Sheldon Baugh, R-Russellville, said he opposes moving Davis' statue.

Baugh, who represents the area of Kentucky where Davis was from, said the former Confederate leader deserves his place in history. Moving the statue to a museum would not be much different from its continued display in the Capitol Rotunda, Baugh said.

"While none of us are proud of the slavery aspect of the Civil War, I think it would be wrong to remove it from the Capitol," Baugh said.

The future of Bather's proposal remains uncertain.

Gov. Ernie Fletcher does not want the statue removed, spokesman Jason Keller said. Rather, Fletcher believes the state should install a plaque explaining Davis' place in history, Keller said.

[aomagrat]

It never ends, does it?

[Rebeleye]

Rep Bather's actions remind me of the Taliban who removed all the statues of Buddha in Afghanistan because they didn't coincide with their philosophy.

[Mr Spock]

It never ends, does it?

Nope, it never ends. Some people can't seem to let go of the past. It's a little extreme of this guy to compare Jefferson Davis to Sadam Hussein.

[highnoon]

>It never ends<

And never will. Interesting read....

http://www.civilwarhome.com/jdavisbio.htm

"Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States of America and commander-in-chief of the army and navy, belongs to history, and his career is subject to full and fair treatment by just and intelligent men. The failure of his government to establish itself in permanency by the power of its armies will not be accepted as evidence against his own right to be reverenced, except by such persons as those who regard the triumphs of superior over inferior force as decisive of merit."

[Docbarleypop]

A statue of Ferdinand I in Catania Sicily just has its head cut off, I always loved driving past that one, much better statement in my opinion.

[Libertarianize the GOP]

ping

[yankeedame]

It never ends, does it?

Not as long as there's a buck to be made.

[stainlessbanner]

bttt

[pending]

A Blue Collar Vermont Yankee on this Dixie Thing
___________________________________________________________
Brattleboro, Southern Vermont.
Home of the "Brattleboro Colonels, the "pride of the south". On the Helmet, two handsome crossed sabres.

Teenage enthusiasms over the years morph this "pride of the South" into singing dixie (Hooray! Hooray!),the occaisional rebel flags and bumper stickers, and a mascot.

Brattleboro was actually named for a revolutionary era Colonel 'Brattle', this likely combined with "pride of southern VT" to "Southern Colonel".

"The colonel". Represented by A mustachioed,stuffed and puffy, soft baby blue clad kind of furry pleasant fellow.

Peace reigns in the valley, as always.

Enter a fellow,(notably not a local) who decided
he was uncomfortable with the "symbolism".

Southern "Colonels" weren't really "Colonels", they were "Slave Owners". The mascot,team symbol, all must Go.
"I demand it", said he.

The local paper gave him thier otherwise inexpensive front page real estate, and the crew of "editorialists" assisted in relentlessly to pumping up the volume of thier irateness.

There never was any actual incident, it was simply "the very idea of it".

The paper is home to seemingly innumerable bitterly frustrated, mud slinging, ill tempered small timers
not one of which displays even the slightest flair
for good original writing,tolerance of opposing views,
nor even of course,a hint of a sense of humor.
Thier politics extend all the way from the far left, to the extreme left.

Here, for them a mission, a purpose,
a crusade, because discovered in thier midst
an objectification of Evil.
A mustachioed,stuffed and puffy, baby blue clad
kind of furry pleasant stuffed Colonel.

They fueled the fires of thier great crusade by printing a amoungst others one vitriolic, ill tempered and genuinely racist letter (most notably not from a local resident). It included the de rigeur standard reference to the "truth" contained in the long discredited and infamous "Elders of Zion" screed.

You know what happened next. An explosion of emotion, from a people wronged by this "journalism".

The inevitable bitter and acrimonious refighting of the civil war ensued.

"Slavery"

"States rights".

The paper gleefully carried on the crusade, printing it all, adding occaisionally even an extra page to its normally single fold front section.

There were still of course no actual incidents or problems. Never one. Not one. But we were all guilty. They said so.

Finally forced into a school vote, the teachers
overwhelmingly vote to reject the evil. Cast it out.

The students, overwhelmingly wanted to sing Hooray! again.
It is a great song after all.
The vote is a loser. Shot down.

The crusade continued.

The orchestrated war of words ended with the handsome sabres and Colonel name retained. There was a victim though.

One stuffed,mustachioed, puffy,baby blue clad kind of furry nice looking fellow was consigned to the ash heap of history.


________________________
Whats the point?

Well, there are I am sure more than I can figure
but the significant one for this
lifetime proud Hardcase New England Yankee,
is in my own small way,
I finally maybe
"got it" on this issue.

There is no racism here, no problems at all.
Could use some more jobs... companies are a bit strangled by the taxes and environmental rules...

But here, there is hope.
How you ask, can this be? Hope?
Hope from this dismal tale of Abuse of Journalistic Priveledge that locally ranks with no less than
the shamed NYT, those French Wartime Reports of a replaying
of siege of Stalingrad and the crippled by Dogma BBC?
Hope?


Because under relentless left wing pressure, from the paper to the unanimous calls of the Universally PC Teachers...
the Kids saw no harm , no foul.

And, for all Americans North and South I bet those
Vermont Yankee not in the least bit racist kids are going to again open up with refrains of
"I wish I were in Dixie, Hooray! Hooray!"

Keep the faith.