Jun 25th, 2010
Speechless
Earlier month I spent a long weekend in Pigeon Forge, Tennesse, with four other friends. The five of us have known each other since our college days and have managed to keep in regular contact over the years. We live in different parts of the country now and don’t get to see each other much, so we decided to plan a mini-vacation together. We chose Pigeon Forge because we can all drive to it (and it’s within very easy driving distance of one friend who has serious health issues), it’s fairly inexpensive (four nights in a pretty nice cabin/house cost us each under $150), and there are a lot of different things to do in the area . . . such as purchase bumper stickers:
I’m not sure what to say when I see something like this. Whenever I’ve visited the South I’ve always been amazed by the proliferation of Confederate-themed signs, monuments, tourist sites, whatever in that region. (I know, I know–the South is about much more than reminiscing about the Confederacy. But those elements are often the most attention grabbing.) Regional heritage is all fine and dandy, but when it takes the form of “Every city in every southern state should have a Confederate Avenue” or “Welcome to Dixie–If you don’t like our flag, leave” it seems less a question of heritage than hate, given that the Confederate flag holds such negative connotations for a huge segment of the population. There’s a reason nonwhites don’t decorate their homes and cars with this decor.
2 Responses to “Speechless”
Here here! (From a Texan) There are SO MANY other ways to celebrate regional heritage! Have you heard about the Religion of the Lost Cause: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_Cause_of_the_Confederacy ? There’s more there for you to be speechless about…
Yeah, that’s always been one of those things that puzzles me, too. :(