Old times here are not forgotten
By R. Neal
East Tennessee’s Blount County lies in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It has a population of approx. 110,000 and is part of the East Tennessee Knoxville Metro area with a population of approx. 680,000. Maryville, the county seat, is former Tennessee Governor and now U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander’s home town.
With its proximity to the main campus of a major university (the University of Tennessee in Knoxville), it’s own four-year college (Maryville College, consistently ranked as one of the top 10 liberal arts colleges in the South), some of the highest ranked public schools in the state, the home of East Tennessee’s regional airport, and host to some of the millions of visitors from around the world to the nation’s most visited national park (the Great Smoky Mountains), you’d think Blount County would be a progressive community that embraces diversity.
You’d be wrong.
(Click on the "there's more" link below for the rest of the story...)
Like the "eccentric" uncle nobody talks about who goes on a bender that makes the local newspaper, racial tensions have recently escalated to front page news.
Blount County remains mostly segregated. Most of Blount County's relatively small minority population (2.9% black and 94.7% white compared to 16.4% black and 80.2% white statewide), resides in a small area within the city of Alcoa. Approx. 58% of the county’s black high school students attend Alcoa High School (30% black and 70% white), which is one of four high schools in the county. The others remain mostly white (Heritage High 98%, William Blount High 96%, and Maryville High 93% white enrollment).
Given those statistics, you’d think the recent racial tensions began in Alcoa.
You’d be wrong.
The problems surfaced at William Blount High School, a rural high school with an enrollment of 23 black students and over 1600 white students. In April of this year, 50 law enforcement officers descended on the school and put it in lockdown. According to school officials, “racially motivated threats” prompted the action.
As more details emerged, we learned that some black students had been targeted on a "hit list" and that a 15-year-old boy was arrested for threatening to bring a gun to school. The incidents occurred just before spring break, which helped calm the situation. But tensions remained when students returned to school.
In the wake of these incidents, William Blount High officials were reassigned, and five black students filed an $11 million civil rights lawsuit against the school, former school officials, and the Blount Co. Board of Education. The lawsuit claims the students were "subjected to pervasive, racial harassment including repeatedly being referred to in racially derogatory terms, by the continued presence of hateful and racially demeaning slogans, by racially offensive gestures, symbols and acts, by being racially stereotyped by faculty and students, and by being subjected to continuing threats of and actual acts of violence."
Then, in May of this year a Hispanic grocery store was vandalized. According to police reports, the vandalism involved broken windows, a broken refrigeration unit that had its contents destroyed, and racist symbols spray painted on the building including WP ("white power"), swastikas, and Nazi SS symbols. Information provided by a Heritage High School resource officer resulted in the arrests of five youths aged from 18 to 21 who confessed to the vandalism.
Sensing that more trouble might be brewing, Maryville City School Board officials debated a change to Maryville High School policy for the upcoming school year. It seems the Maryville High sports teams are known as "The Rebels", and the school mascot is "Johnny Reb". I’ll give you three guesses as to the school’s official unofficial flag, and the first two guesses don’t count.
Perhaps mindful of the $11 million civil rights lawsuit over at William Blount High, proactive members of the school board recommended banning Maryville High’s flag (and if you guessed that it’s the Rebel Flag, a/k/a the Confederate Battle Flag, you guessed correctly) at school functions and sporting events.
Much drama ensued.
Presumably seeking cover from lawsuits claiming violation of First Amendment rights, the new policy was crafted as a "safety" measure, with the idea that all these Rebel Flags waving about at sporting events posed a public safety hazard (someone could get an eye put out!).
After a couple of public hearings and much debate, the school board voted this month (with one member opposing) to implement the new "safety policy" which bans among other things flags, banners, and "handheld signs and implements (e.g. poles, sticks and wires to support flags, banners or other such items)" at any school sponsored activity. The band’s color guard is exempt. The Rebel Flag is not referenced, but implicitly covered by the ban. The policy also addresses "fighting words" and other disruptive speech.
To everyone’s credit, supporters and opponents of the ban who attended public meetings and demonstrations were mostly civil and there have been no reports of violence or other unfortunate incidents. One must wonder, though, if this is the end of the latest chapter or the beginning of a new one.
We’ve all heard the arguments for preserving this Symbol of Pride in our Great Southern Heritage. The Confederate Flag is not a symbol of racism and hatred. It’s a symbol freedom and independence, and particularly freedom from the oppressive tyranny of a Federal government too big for its britches. Oh, yeah, and the Civil War was not about slavery. It was about States’ Rights. (Which presumably includes the state’s right to allow its citizens to own slaves.)
The controversy had received some national attention, and resulted in some strange bedfellows. In perhaps the most puzzling alliance, the former president of a local NAACP chapter in North Carolina joined with the Sons of the Confederacy to protest the ban. H.K. Edgerton (pictured above) staged a walk from Johnson City to Maryville carrying the Rebel Flag to protest the "cleansing of Southern history." He says that “students are being force-fed a whole system of propaganda that tells them Southern history is tainted by slavery and Confederate symbols are racist.”
I am amazed that we are still debating this in the 21st Century. It shouldn’t be at all surprising to me, though, living in a region where folks proudly hang paintings of Jeff Davis and Nathan Bedford Forrest on their living room walls. We know there is still racism and hatred festering just under the surface, but we sometimes wonder how successive generations learn it. Hatred is not something you are born with. It is something you are taught. One can only conclude they are being taught at home. Consider these remarks from a recent letter to the local paper:
Clearly those who opposed the ban (and others such as the school board member who was surprised to learn that black students resent the Rebel Flag) do not represent the whole of Blount County. In fact, there are probably some less oblivious white people in Blount County who have actually talked to a black person at one time or another. But sadly this is old news to the "liberal pinko do-gooder crowd" in the South, where such drama plays out on all too frequent a basis.
Regardless, I hope for a day when we can finally put all this behind us. With all due respect to our collective Southern Heritage, some symbols of the old times here are best forgotten. And I’m not talking about biscuits and gravy, pecan pie, or Mint Juleps. Especially not the Mint Juleps.
OK, then.
East Tennessee’s Blount County lies in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It has a population of approx. 110,000 and is part of the East Tennessee Knoxville Metro area with a population of approx. 680,000. Maryville, the county seat, is former Tennessee Governor and now U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander’s home town.With its proximity to the main campus of a major university (the University of Tennessee in Knoxville), it’s own four-year college (Maryville College, consistently ranked as one of the top 10 liberal arts colleges in the South), some of the highest ranked public schools in the state, the home of East Tennessee’s regional airport, and host to some of the millions of visitors from around the world to the nation’s most visited national park (the Great Smoky Mountains), you’d think Blount County would be a progressive community that embraces diversity.
You’d be wrong.
(Click on the "there's more" link below for the rest of the story...)
Like the "eccentric" uncle nobody talks about who goes on a bender that makes the local newspaper, racial tensions have recently escalated to front page news.
Blount County remains mostly segregated. Most of Blount County's relatively small minority population (2.9% black and 94.7% white compared to 16.4% black and 80.2% white statewide), resides in a small area within the city of Alcoa. Approx. 58% of the county’s black high school students attend Alcoa High School (30% black and 70% white), which is one of four high schools in the county. The others remain mostly white (Heritage High 98%, William Blount High 96%, and Maryville High 93% white enrollment).
Given those statistics, you’d think the recent racial tensions began in Alcoa.
You’d be wrong.
The problems surfaced at William Blount High School, a rural high school with an enrollment of 23 black students and over 1600 white students. In April of this year, 50 law enforcement officers descended on the school and put it in lockdown. According to school officials, “racially motivated threats” prompted the action.
As more details emerged, we learned that some black students had been targeted on a "hit list" and that a 15-year-old boy was arrested for threatening to bring a gun to school. The incidents occurred just before spring break, which helped calm the situation. But tensions remained when students returned to school.
In the wake of these incidents, William Blount High officials were reassigned, and five black students filed an $11 million civil rights lawsuit against the school, former school officials, and the Blount Co. Board of Education. The lawsuit claims the students were "subjected to pervasive, racial harassment including repeatedly being referred to in racially derogatory terms, by the continued presence of hateful and racially demeaning slogans, by racially offensive gestures, symbols and acts, by being racially stereotyped by faculty and students, and by being subjected to continuing threats of and actual acts of violence."
Then, in May of this year a Hispanic grocery store was vandalized. According to police reports, the vandalism involved broken windows, a broken refrigeration unit that had its contents destroyed, and racist symbols spray painted on the building including WP ("white power"), swastikas, and Nazi SS symbols. Information provided by a Heritage High School resource officer resulted in the arrests of five youths aged from 18 to 21 who confessed to the vandalism.
Sensing that more trouble might be brewing, Maryville City School Board officials debated a change to Maryville High School policy for the upcoming school year. It seems the Maryville High sports teams are known as "The Rebels", and the school mascot is "Johnny Reb". I’ll give you three guesses as to the school’s official unofficial flag, and the first two guesses don’t count.
Perhaps mindful of the $11 million civil rights lawsuit over at William Blount High, proactive members of the school board recommended banning Maryville High’s flag (and if you guessed that it’s the Rebel Flag, a/k/a the Confederate Battle Flag, you guessed correctly) at school functions and sporting events.
Much drama ensued.
Presumably seeking cover from lawsuits claiming violation of First Amendment rights, the new policy was crafted as a "safety" measure, with the idea that all these Rebel Flags waving about at sporting events posed a public safety hazard (someone could get an eye put out!).
After a couple of public hearings and much debate, the school board voted this month (with one member opposing) to implement the new "safety policy" which bans among other things flags, banners, and "handheld signs and implements (e.g. poles, sticks and wires to support flags, banners or other such items)" at any school sponsored activity. The band’s color guard is exempt. The Rebel Flag is not referenced, but implicitly covered by the ban. The policy also addresses "fighting words" and other disruptive speech.
To everyone’s credit, supporters and opponents of the ban who attended public meetings and demonstrations were mostly civil and there have been no reports of violence or other unfortunate incidents. One must wonder, though, if this is the end of the latest chapter or the beginning of a new one.
We’ve all heard the arguments for preserving this Symbol of Pride in our Great Southern Heritage. The Confederate Flag is not a symbol of racism and hatred. It’s a symbol freedom and independence, and particularly freedom from the oppressive tyranny of a Federal government too big for its britches. Oh, yeah, and the Civil War was not about slavery. It was about States’ Rights. (Which presumably includes the state’s right to allow its citizens to own slaves.)
The controversy had received some national attention, and resulted in some strange bedfellows. In perhaps the most puzzling alliance, the former president of a local NAACP chapter in North Carolina joined with the Sons of the Confederacy to protest the ban. H.K. Edgerton (pictured above) staged a walk from Johnson City to Maryville carrying the Rebel Flag to protest the "cleansing of Southern history." He says that “students are being force-fed a whole system of propaganda that tells them Southern history is tainted by slavery and Confederate symbols are racist.”
I am amazed that we are still debating this in the 21st Century. It shouldn’t be at all surprising to me, though, living in a region where folks proudly hang paintings of Jeff Davis and Nathan Bedford Forrest on their living room walls. We know there is still racism and hatred festering just under the surface, but we sometimes wonder how successive generations learn it. Hatred is not something you are born with. It is something you are taught. One can only conclude they are being taught at home. Consider these remarks from a recent letter to the local paper:
"Every time that the 'liberal pinko do-gooder' crowd starts pointing the finger of political correctness at the Rebel flag, they need to realize that there are actually three fingers of hypocrisy pointing back their way. In their liberal ‘enlightened’ crusade to rid the world of all things oppressive, they themselves become the fascists and oppressors.(Although it would be disingenuous to suggest a correlation at this point, Blount County is also one of the most Republican counties in East Tennessee, which happens to be the most Republican region in the Red State of Tennessee. Blount County went 68% for Bush in 2004, v. 57% for the state at large. Blount County went 75% for U.S. Senator Dr. Bill Frist in 2000, 89% for popular Republican Congressman Jimmy Duncan, and 81% for Duncan again in 2004. Blount County’s state representatives and local elected officials are almost exclusively Republican.)
These liberal fruitcakes need to practice what they preach or hit the road. I, for one, am tired of their irrational whining and reflex babbling.
The Maryville City School Board's recent actions concerning the Rebel flag are just the top of the proverbial iceberg of misrepresentation being carried out by our local governing bodies.
We, as Blount Countians and ultimately as Americans, have got to take back our local government from the heathen grip of the liberal minority's lawyers and the land developing racketeers before there's nothing left to uniquely call Blount County home.
Now is the time to honor our southern ancestry with a 'Volunteer' willingness to fight the good fight. Now is the time to 'Rebel' against the oppressiveness of the liberal minority and the racketeering practices of our local government officials."
Clearly those who opposed the ban (and others such as the school board member who was surprised to learn that black students resent the Rebel Flag) do not represent the whole of Blount County. In fact, there are probably some less oblivious white people in Blount County who have actually talked to a black person at one time or another. But sadly this is old news to the "liberal pinko do-gooder crowd" in the South, where such drama plays out on all too frequent a basis.
Regardless, I hope for a day when we can finally put all this behind us. With all due respect to our collective Southern Heritage, some symbols of the old times here are best forgotten. And I’m not talking about biscuits and gravy, pecan pie, or Mint Juleps. Especially not the Mint Juleps.
OK, then.
33 Comments:
Boy, now I remember why I'm glad I moved out of Blount County 12 yrs ago. I can't believe a newspaper would print such idiocy.
Glad to see you're back to writing.
Gerald
Cookeville
Boy, now I remember why I'm glad I moved out of Blount County 12 yrs ago. I can't believe a newspaper would print such idiocy.
Glad to see you're back to writing.
Glad to read your voice again, R. Neal. I remember when my daughter was about 4, her grandmother called and obviously was fishing to see what her mother was teaching this impressionable young child. "What color are you?" Grandmother asked. My beautiful child looked at her arm and replied, "Oh, I'm kinda silver."
Blessings Abound!
OK then! Couldn't agree more.
"(Although it would be disingenuous to suggest a correlation at this point, Blount County is also one of the most Republican counties in East Tennessee, which happens to be the most Republican region in the Red State of Tennessee."
Yeah. Well, although it would be disingenuous to suggest a correlation at this point, Cindy "Get Israel out of Palestine" Sheehan Wholosthersoniniraq has the support of several neo-Nazi organizations. See here and here and here .
Guilt by association - ain't it fun?
What was the Civil War about? We needn't guess, as four of the Seceding States set forth Declarations of the Causes of their Secession (similar to the Declaration of Independence). You can find them at:
http://members.aol.com/jfepperson/reasons.html
(note the links to each state's declaration at the top of the page)
Mississippi’s has, as the second sentence:
"Our position is thoroughly identified with the institution of slavery-- the greatest material interest of the world. Its labor supplies the product which constitutes by far the largest and most important portions of commerce of the earth."
That of Texas closes with:
"[I]t is meet that our own views should be distinctly proclaimed.
We hold as undeniable truth that ... the servitude of the African race, as existing in these States, is mutually beneficial to both bond and free, and is abundantly authorized and justified by the experience of mankind, and the revealed will of the Almighty Creator, as recognized by all Christian nations..."
The secessionists made no bones about the fact that they would fight to preserve their right to hold other people in bondage. Let us take them at their word.
Bubba! So good to see you posting somewhere again! I missed your blogging voice. This is an excellent post. Thanks.
Okay- as an East Tennessean who now lives in North Central Illinois, I must say- there are CERTAINLY worse places for a minority to live than East Tennessee. I was raised to not treat anyone different than anyone else based on color or religion. I was taught that there were reasons why the North was right, and reasons why the South was right. The North was (and still is) a completely different economy from the South. It was wrong for people to use slave labor in the 1700's and 1800's, undoubtedly. But, looking around me- here in Illinois- just in 2 years... I have heard more racial slurs, ignorant stereotypical remarks, and nasty 'N'-words than I heard in 26 years living in the South! I went to Knoxville West High School. We dealt with this same stuff (West High Rebels) in high school. They changed our mascot... Took Colonel Archibald away and gave us that stupid UNLV mascot. You know what? I see more people up here in Illinois driving around with a rebel flag on their vehicle, and they have NO Southern heritage whatsoever, than I EVER did back home. Those who are offended by the Confederate flag are obviously either used to these Yankee idiots with their misused flags or are just being too damn jumpy. When our class was surveyed in high school, we all were FINE with keeping the rebel mascot and flag. The skittish school board changed it. And lemme tell you- when I attend my high school reunion this week- I'm gonna guess about 50% of our attendees will be minorities. Oh... By the way... My family is Jewish... Think on that one for awhile.
I was amused to read Gerald from Cookeville's comment about being glad he moved from Blount County. I live in Blount Co. & attend Tennessee Tech in Cookeville & I know I'm almost to Cookeville by the HUGE Confederate flag on property that adjoins I-40, just E. of Cookeville. I mean this flag must be at least 10' x 19' & was obviously put up a great expense right next to the Interstate by someone wanting to make a "statement." It's not just Blount Co.; Cookeville, too. Glass houses, Gerald!
Like the Anonymous West HS graduate (I'm Bearden HS), I saw Confederate flags displayed far, far from the South (CA even!) and learned about prejudices was beyond those against Blacks - I'd never heard of "Beaner" before living in CA.
We all need to work together and EDUCATE people. I was and remain hopeful the Internet will open more eyes.
After being away from TN for almost 20 yrs. (CA, NY, OR), I moved back in '97. I live in Blount Co., on the lake in Louisville. It's beautiful. It has many strengths. Unfortunately, ignorance still seems to prevail and rednecks abound. I had forgotten about the sidewalks spattered with chewing tobacco and dip. About the beer cans and other garbage thrown into the back of pick-ups, only to blow out & litter our countryside. Discharging firearms in the city limits is legal here!
I would like to think that my fellow Tennesseans are basically good people, but I believe most still want good to be reserved for themselves and those who look and think like them. They have little knowledge of (and no apparent respect for) diversity. I taught math at a high school in Blount County last year (same co. as Maryville Rebels). Our school banned Maryville from bringing "their flag" to our school, long before Maryville banned them. No confederate flags can appear on student's clothing either. They're a still a popular front license plate, though.
I am finishing up my Master's in Ed. now. Some of my classmates (teachers! in Grad. School!!) argue that it's unfair to the majority to disallow prayer in school & at school football games, and remove all mention of evolution from their science classes in state schools. They want intelligent design taught & no recognition that cloning is possible. It's scary.
They claim the Confederate Flag is symbolic of Southern Pride, not bigotry, but they know better. They still want this to be a South where the white man is king. They want to feel better about themselves by putting others down.
Please don't give up on us. There were many in support of removing the rebel flag & it DID pass. I was not the only one at the Gore rally at the Knoxville airport. Knoxville held a peaceful had anti-war protest before we bombed Iraq. Not EVERYONE here is ignorant and prejudiced. It's a slower process than I hoped it would be. I fear our current admin. w/ its Faith-based initiatives may have even reversed it. Still, we can't loose hope. - Candice
I've experienced more racism while living in the North than I EVER did growing up in Blount County. In the midwest, you'd almost think there is an obsession with the Stars & Bars, and I have even seen Confederate flags on cars on I-495 (Long Island Expressway.)
People in Blount County don't know how good they have it. I guarantee you the standard of living there is higher than any numbers suggest. The land is beautiful, the people are generally courteous and friendly. You'll be surprised to know that one of the first things "Yankees" say to me is "You are from East Tennessee? Why in the world did you ever move here? I love that place!" Many Northerners I know yearn to live there, raise a family there, or retire there. The stigma attached to the South, or being Southern, is not as prevalent as one might think.
Many people are beginning to realize the externalities of the War Between the States, given a larger global perspective and hindsight. I have friends studying American history in Manchester, Madrid, Budapest, and Cairo...where the census seems to be that Lincoln got the ball rolling for US imperialism. At the very least, their teachings will present the Southern cases for secession. At any rate, there is a strong case to be made in international circles (who have had civil wars of their own) that in hindsight, the South was....perhaps RIGHT?
The "progressive" or "liberal" types should move to New England, Chicago, Cleveland, etc. where there are like-minded people, right? Nope...nobody there will care about them. Nobody will pat them on the back and tell them they are better than the "hicks" and "rednecks" they left. Nobody cares. They'll WANT to move back at this point, but they already sold their house to a family from New Jersey who WON'T BUDGE.
The minorites who are complaining should try living in the Northern states, as well. See how well they are treated by the Italians in upstate New York. Watch and see if they are welcomed by the old German-Catholics in Cincinnati. Wonder if the Suffolk County Sheriff will be as friendly as the Maryville PD. DON'T COUNT ON IT - YOU HAVE TO LEAVE BLOUNT COUNTY TO APPRECIATE IT.
I don't know any nicer way to put it - but it's a joke how people in Blount County are expending time and energy on this issue when kids are failing algebra.
Thanks for quoting my letter. I appreciate the press. The only problem with all of your "liberal d0-gooder crusader" statements is that this all boils down to free speech. Banning the rebel will never get rid of racism. Then again "enlightened intellectuals" like yourselves should know that.
Contrary to the statement made, NO! I am not a Republican. I'm not a pansie assed liberal democrat either. I'm an individual that believes in the Constitution. All of it! Not just part of it like you fruitcakes.
Like I said, practice what you preach or hit the road. Gerald did! What a puss!
I almost forgot... If you "hypocrites" can find a way to explain your position without a double standard, somebody might take your whining seriously.
ASSIMILATE OR LEAVE!!!!!!!!
By the way, most true Americans know that when the liberal left starts calling you names like biggot and racist doesn't mean that you are. It just means that you are winning the argument.
Next time any of you liberals make it to E. Tenn., look me up in Townsend. I have no problem whatsoever explaining my position in person.
May God bless each and every one you whether you deserve it or not.
I just thought that I would remind you losers that a 20 million dollar lawsuit was also filed against the Blount County School System for violating the free-speech of several students by kicking them out of school for wearing the Rebel Flag. Two sides to everything, right?
Also, the deal at Maryville High School has now back fired on the "liberal do-gooder" school board that implemented the communistic and fascist policy. Last year there were more rebel flags at games than ever before. The flags were on T-shirts, hats and other articles of clothing. The flag doesn't have to be on a flag pole to show it proudly.
Just thought I would let you losers in on something else that makes you look so half-assed.
It amazes me that so many on the liberal left like to preach multiculturalism, yet they are the ones destroying a culture. Just check out all these underhanded developers in my county. They want something else to sell their investments like these bogus crusades against the rebel flag. Their only reasoning is one more selling point to help them make money. In the mean time, my Southern Appalachian Culture is being destroyed. By the way, nobody in my family ever owned slaves. My ancestors made no bones about the fact that they were fighting for representation, not slavery.
I can't believe that you pansies cry and whine so much about the rebel flag being offensive, yet you have succeeded in offending every true Southerner who has ever lived, by branding their ancestors racists and biggots.
The Northern states made money from the slave trade also. As a matter of fact, not slave ship was owned out of a Southern port. Most of the big money made in the slave trade was not from the work that the slaves had to endure, but rather from the actual selling of these "self-enslaved" folks.
Maybe you cowards will decide to study history one day. We can only hope.
I just want to throw my opinion in here about this. I live in Blount County, and I go to William Blount High School. I was there when all this happened, and I went through every "bomb threat" that occurred. Yes, there were numerous occasions where the police were called for people writing "BOMB IN SCHOOL, BOMB GOES OFF AT 3," etc... in the bathroom stalls. But now because of this, everyone thinks that we're a school full of racists. That's completely false. The students who vandalized the stalls simply knew that that would get the whole school out of class for almost a whole day. I'm not saying that there aren't any racist people at our school, because I know there are people who are intolerant of others. But there's only a handfull. Just like racists in the whole United States, these people, whom the rest of the students have deemed "Uneducated White Confederate Mountain Americans," don't represent the whole population. But because of that handfull of people, the whole student body got the blame. And furthermore, anyone who lives in Maryville/Blount County knows that the local paper, THE DAILY TIMES, treats William Blount horribly. Fifth in line after Maryville, Alcoa, Heritage, and Greenback High Schools. I, personally, have experienced this. I won the countywide track meet for the pole vault in 2005, and they put the picture of the girl from MHS that got second. This "racism" is just another attempt for the DAILY TIMES to give WBHS a bad reputation. No one ever hears about our fundraisers for leukemia/lymphoma, or about our Academic Decathlon team, etc... and if they do, it's in a little three inch write-up in the very back. So who do I blame for this whole situation? The press. Thank you, DAILY TIMES, for screwing WBHS over royally... again.
And for the record, no.. I'm not a republican, in case you were wondering.. but you probably weren't. Just your friendly neighborhood democrat.. one of the only dots of blue in this sea of red in TN.
Everybody who is from Blount County is familiar with the WBHS situation and the subsequent botch by the Blount County Fuzz.
"...whom the rest of the students have deemed "uneducated White Confederate Mountain Americans"..." What!!!
Seeing as how you are all high school students, aren't all of you somewhat "uneducated"???
"Mountain Americans"??? What kind of garbage is this??? I happen to be one of those "Mountain Americans". And by the way, college educated honors graduate.
That's a hypocritcal statement if I've ever heard one. You can offend poor white mountain people but you can't say anything about blacks or any other minority. This is the hypocrisy of politcal correctness and the liberal crusaders who push it.
The daily times does suck, but what do you really know about "racism"???
Judging from your outrageous comments of idiocy, not much!
I originally posted the comment from 6/10/2006 7:53 AM...and I have one more thing to add:
"If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all."
-Noam Chomsky
If I remember my TN history correctly, most mountain people were pro-Union during the War of Northern Aggression.
"...if I remember TN history correctly..."
That's the problem. Obviously your memory is clouded by the modern day liberal revisionist's account of history.
Most Southern Appalachians had no stake in the Civil War. They didn't own slaves and they didn't want more government in their lives.
Why do you think thet they chose a life of seclusion in the Mountains?
These self-sufficient folks did however have a huge problem with the fact that we were being taxed without any representation from Washington.
Check out the numbers for enlistment in Cades Cove, NC and TN. When the war started, only thirteen young men left to fight in the war. Of this thirteen, seven joined the confederacy. That's hardly support for the Union from all Southern Mountain people.
All of my ancestors could be considered Southern Mountain people, but none fought for the Union. Not a single one owned slaves either.
I long for the day that TRUE UN-REVISED history has a place in our educational process in this country. It will never happen, though. We have way too many liberal crusaders who know nothing of truth.
GOD BLESS DEAR 'OL DIXIE!
I just wanted o let you folks know about the most recent self-inflicted racism at Maryville HS.
Seems the senior class decided to use a stuffed coon for a senior mascot. While at the Alcoa football game some fruitcake in the crowd were offended that this animal would be referred to as a "COON." Needless to say, she was one of these "victim-mentality" minorities.
This woman pitched a fit and even wrote the paper to prove what an idiot she was.
My point is this: we have coons, coon-hounds and coon hunters in this state; none of which are wearing white hoods and preaching racism.
Sadly, they have all been branded as racists by some slave mentality black wanting something for nothing.
There is no organized racism in Blount County. Nobody is being told to ride in the back of the bus or use a different water fountain. Nobody is having crosses burned in their yards either. The only things that have happened that could even be remotely considered "racial", has been vandalism that was carried out by some drunken teens.
People like this should get a life or try something to raise their IQ.
Pangle protests too much. Check out the names of the dead on the front of the Blount County Court House in the Civil War. A lot more are listed "Union" than "Confederate." The East Tennesseans who supported the Confederacy did so because they lived along the Virginia and East Tennessee Railroad and did business with the Virginia Piedmont and with Alabama and Georgia. That's why Knox County and Washington County had higher levels of Confederate support than other East Tennessee counties off the railroad.
As for why the Southern states seceded in the first place, I suppose they were just joking when they declared that it was to protect slavery from Federal intrusion. I suppose Confederate VP ALexander Stephens was just speaking tongue-in-cheek when he declared slavery the "cornerstone" of the Southern republic. I suppose nobody in the South really liked slavery...except the happy slaves themselves. Right?
Protest too much???
Are you a fascist like the rest of the liberal crusading elitists???
Thanks for your bogus take on E. Tenn civil war history. You proved my point.
There was nothing that the South was joking about during the civil.
As for your Blount County Courthouse war dead, I cannot deny that more Union soldiers lost their lives fightinf for more federalism.
And you cannot deny the fact that the South killed nearly three union soldiers to one confederate death. That's why there are so many more Union Soldiers listed as Blount County Civil war deaths.
If you take the 3 to 1 one margin and factor in the variable that nearly half the Confederate Soldiers died from disease, the margin actually changes to nearly 6 to 1.
I don't know that i would call losing 6 soldiers to kill one confederate is much of victory. But never-the-less, this is what Yankees and Revisonists call "winning."
We can only assume, Elrod that you are as ignorant of history as most twinkle-toed liberals. Cryin' and whinin' and pissin' and moanin'.....it just goes on and on.
As for Washington and Knox County, who cares?!!! We're talking about Blount County and how a bunch of Maryville College Bleedin' Heart liberals were unable to ban free speech.
Put that in your little revisonist liberal pipe and smoke it. Of course you'll have to clear out the crack first.
Thanks again for proving my point and thanks to this site for keeping this on the web. I love it when liberals open their mouthes.
GOD BLESS DIXIE!
Obviously, ELROD, you don't know much about Blount County Civil War history.
Normally I charge for such enlightenment, but in your case, the information should be considered a civic duty.
Northern troops carried a kill ratio of 1:3 during the civil war. This means that for every confederate they killed, 3 union soldiers lost their lives.
This is fact, not fiction. Union war dead will always be higher.
Get your facts straight, ELROD.
I just can't understand why people like Elrod automatically assume that all Southerners fought for one thing: slavery.
His statements completely show the ignorance of typical lefty socialists.
Pangle is right on the money. This issue boils to one thing: Free Speech.
Sounds to me like this guy should run for governor.
Keep up the good work, Pangle. I can appreciate anybody with the backbone to call liberals out for what they are: WORTHLESS.
According to the TN Blue Book, it is the duty of the governor to announce:
1)Confederate Memorial Day
2)Nathan Bedford Forrest Day
3)Robert E. Lee Day
As long as my home state has confederate holidays that are LEGISLATED, then I will fly my Rebel Flag wherever and whenever I damn well please.
Sounds to me like the School Board is a gaggle of race jockeys.
"I don't know any nicer way to put it - but it's a joke how people in Blount County are expending time and energy on this issue when kids are failing algebra."
Sounds to me like the kids are failing history, too. That is if history is being taught anymore. Evidentally two years of Spanish or french is more important than the history of their region.
"Given those statistics, you’d think the recent racial tensions began in Alcoa. You’d be wrong."
The problem did start in Alcoa. That's where Marjorie and Carl Stewart live. These two whiners are the communists who started this whole fiasco. Carl should have gone to Alcoa but instead his mother paid tuition for him to go outside of his district and community.
Are all liberals in denial of fact?
"Clearly those who opposed the ban (and others such as the school board member who was surprised to learn that black students resent the Rebel Flag) do not represent the whole of Blount County."
What a bogus misrepresentation of Blount County. Evidentally you don't get out much like Mark Kates.
Put it to a referendum and we'll see how your assumptions are flawed.
"Our ancestors blood soaks this soil, and now our students are being taught that they either have to deny that heritage, or be labeled racist"
Van Irion - Knoxville attorney representing students at WB
First of all, Elrod is obviously an idiot.
Secondly, with al the talk of "winning" and "losing", you would think that someone would actually bring up the fact that the civil war didn't end with Lee's surrender.
What about the 13 years of reconstruction in which nearly 200,000 people lost their lives?
What about the debate going on today? What about the riots that took place in NY after the emancipation of the negore?
Well, what about it, revisionists?
Hello out there,
I live in the mountains of Northern Ca and even here we see racial tension. I've never been to the South and being hispanic we are taught to keep away from those states for the reasons we are reading in these posts. I dont know how much of it is true or how much is over played for attention. I do believe everyone is entitled their own thoughts and of course freedom of speech. As long as it doesn't turn into actual attacks, that wouldn't be good for anyone..I hear a lot of double standards and that is very wrong as well. Both sides no matter what your race is, should be allowed to say the same about each other. You always hear black and even hispanics saying "white trash" remarks but when anything gets said about them it makes news and that's wrong...Can anyone tell me how things are in Kentucky?
Hispanics? Kentucky? What does that have to do with the fact that a bunch of bleeding heart liberals made complete and total idiots out of themselves in Maryville, TN?
By the way, I stop at a Mexican Grocery in Eagleton at least three times a week to get some good tacos.
All that I see in Blount County in our down home hospitality shown towards Hispanics. My God, they make us take two years of Spanish in school...what more do you want?
Good God, the internets sure bring out the morons. I love the argument that more Blount County Unionists died because of some kill ratio that automatically puts 3 Union dead to 1 Confederate. Does it occur to Pangle and his bizarre brethren here that these Union dead listed here died fighting a guerrilla war against the Tennessee Confederate State government? These weren't Union soldiers on the offensive getting picked off at Fredericksburg. Unionists in Blount County were on the defensive. Or that 85% of Blount Countians voted to remain loyal to the Union in the referendum held in June 1861?
If you know anything about Blount County you'd recognize that most of these names are local bigwigs. This was Union country, whether you like it or not.
http://www.blountweb.com/blountcountymilitary/reference/war_dead/civil_war.htmhttp://www.blountweb.com/blountcountymilitary/reference/war_dead/civil_war.htm
Ignorant neo-Confederates have tried to appropriate the war for their own purposes since the end of he war itself. 200,000 dead in Reconstruction? What garbage. In fact, most killed in Reconstruction were African Americans trying to gain their rights. But your heroes in the Ku Klux Klan sure showed 'em.
I am now attending William Blount High School. When told to remove the Confederate flag on my folder,I was deeply offended. HOW DARE they demean the importance of the Confederate Soldier and his sacrifices. Why should a mexican kid be allowed to post his flag when me and my fellow southerners can not post ours. If you ask me,The Confederate flag is just as important as the U.S. flag. I happen to have several ancestors that served in the C.S. army. I think Blount County Schools has disrespected many people and their ancestors and should apologize for such rude behavior.
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