330,000 WHITE Union military knowingly left their families and went to their DEATHS during the Civil War; they gave up their lives to free the BLACK AMERICAN SLAVES, they FOLLOWED the directives and emancipation orders of their government, a government THEY ELECTED. I have never heard a Progressive African-American, or a White Progressive, ever ACKNOWLEDGE, much less “thank” these men for their sacrifices, nor do they recognize the 260,000 White Union military who were wounded and/or grievously disabled; nor the widows; nor the children; nor the families of the military who also suffered TO FREE THE BLACK SLAVES.
I think we get sidetracked when we think this whole brouhaha is about the past. It’s about the present. I hate to say it, but it’s a shake down. The “Revs.” Jackson and Sharpton have perfected it. Get a few very squeaky wheels to throw huge tantrums, target and ostracize people with deep pockets, make them feel guilty, and blackmail them. Pure and simple.
Rational people have to keep calm, behave like adults, and ignore the tantrums. Eventually they will subside, but if they get even a little of what they want, the tantrums will continue and intensify.
You should read some of the contemporary letters and notes from Union troops during the Civil War to get an idea what they thought about “fighting to end slavery.” A perhaps surprisingly high number said that if the War was to free the slaves they wouldn’t be fighting it. The overwhelming number said they fought to preserve the Union. They were perfectly content to have slave states remain in the Union.
Think of it: If the War had been to end slavery then the Union troops would have attacked and crushed Delaware (a Northern slave state), Maryland and Kentucky (both neutral slave states). But they didn’t. So, the War could not have been to end slavery, could it?