As we recently recognized the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, we are also approaching the anniversaries of two watershed events in American history. Next July marks 50 years since the passage of the Civil Rights Act, which dealt a blow to the rule of Jim Crow. And September 2014 is the 150th anniversary of the fall of Atlanta during the Civil War.
The latter was the pivotal moment in the conflict. It came when the war seemed at a stalemate and Northern morale was low — so low, it seemed President Abraham Lincoln would lose the election and the war with it. Instead, the fall of Atlanta was the decisive turning point that ensured Lincoln’s re-election, secured the outcome of the war, and provided the death knell of slavery.
Atlanta’s role in the civil rights movement and the Civil War inspires us to commemorate these anniversaries with respect and honesty.
The centennial of the Civil War, in the 1960s, was a missed opportunity to deal truthfully with its legacy. Next year must be different. Events surrounding the sesquicentennial of the conflict, however, have been largely met with apathy. An editorial in this paper recently stated, “Most African-Americans regard the Civil War with relative indifference.”
The Atlanta History Center is familiar with views from the African-American community, including those close to our organization, who believe we focus too much on the Civil War. Some of these arguments, as expressed in the editorial, state the blood shed to abolish slavery “hardly feels like something worth commemorating.” Others remember the underlying neo-Confederate interpretation that dominated popular discussions in the past.
Conversely, some whites regard the civil rights movement as irrelevant to their lives and believe the history center focuses too much on a politically correct version of African-American history. In doing so, they fail to recognize that social justice has a profound effect on our entire nation, and that history is not about making one group feel good, or another feel bad.
The Atlanta History Center does not seek to celebrate the Civil War or the civil rights movement. We aspire to reflect on the importance of the events themselves. The greater purpose is to address the larger challenge of helping our increasingly fractured communities perceive our collective history.
We must all realize we are connected by the same history: The civil rights movement cannot be viewed as only applicable to African-Americans, or the Civil War as only significant to whites. The outcomes of the Civil War are relevant to all, just as the promise of the civil rights movement is integral to all Americans.
The Atlanta History Center connects people, history and culture. The civil rights movement and Civil War are two crucial examples that clearly demonstrate why our history cannot be segregated. The Atlanta History Center will use these commemorations to emphasize our common past and allow us to appreciate our shared future.
Sheffield Hale, an Atlanta native, is president and CEO of the Atlanta History Center.
