| In 1991, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) enacted a resolution calling the Confederate Battle Flag "a tyrannical evil" and an "odious blight upon the universe" and dedicating its resources to the eradication of the flag's image from all public spaces. A swell of opposition arose against this resolution and in 1992, The Confederate Society of America (CSA) was established as the first of many organizations in what is now commonly referred to as the "neo-Confederate" movement. |
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| CSA's initial goals were focused primarily on the preservation of Confederate history and the protection
and restoration of its remaining symbols, including flags, monuments, memorials and
cemeteries. Over the intervening years these goals have been modified and expanded as
heritage attacks have degenerated into an all-out assault on Southern civilization. What
was principally the ojectives of postwar "Reconstruction" has again become the
rallying cry of those seeking to promote Northern progressivism over Southern traditionalism,
thereby transforming (or "Yankeefying") Dixie into what is now coined as the "New South." |
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| Although
effective methodologies to oppose and defeat these attempts at breaking the back of the
Bible Belt have yet to be established, it is clear that CSA and other related
organizations must move toward two principle objectives: the restoration of Old South
cultural values and the reclamation of state sovereignty from which a new Confederacy
might emerge. |
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| When we speak of
Old South cultural values, we do not imply a return to the social caste
structure of the antebellum South nor do we suggest such a transformation to be in the
realm of the feasible. No, what we seek to promote and reclaim are her institutional
roots; the inner self-reliance of its people, their celtic devotion to kith and kin, and
most importantly, the spiritual canons of Calvanism including biblical supremacy, the
doctrine of original sin and salvation through grace. For it is these principles that
nourished the rise of Southern sectionalism and which might once again raise Dixie up as a
shining example in the community of nations. |
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| Ah, but the
question of secession and the perception of many that it is inseparable from
"rebellion" and "treason." Thus is it realistic to support the
re-segmenting of the nation? Or should we join with the many "conservative"
groups seeking to reform the government in accordance with the founding principles of the
Constitution of the United States? And if we were to choose the latter, is it truly
feasible to expect a government so inherently corrupt to be capable of reform? Further, is
the principle of federalism (centralism) – unquestioned since its ascension in the
Constitution – a system of government we should so eagerly embrace when it has
historically shown itself to be incapable of regulating the proper distribution of power? |
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| These and many,
many other critical issues surround the very survival of the American experiment. No
matter how much we'd like to believe that simple answers avail themselves to complex
questions, the reality is much harsher. Ignorance has become our friend and the reasoned
abilities to examine, understand, and advance viable political solutions are to us as
strangers. A citizenry unable and/or unwilling to think for itself are nothing more than
roadkill for the vultures of totalitariansim, who even now sit poised, ready to claim the
leavings of what was once the greatest nation on earth. |
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| Yet, the fat
lady hasn't sung and time still exists for change. Certainly though the time for walking
softly has passed and it is now time to bring out the big stick. CSA is moving to do its part by developing several long-term strategies focusing upon accomplishing the
principle goals of awakening people to the danger and providing the resources to educate
them to the truth. These involve the dispersal of literature, educational seminars and
promotion of authors writing the truth about the Old South and the Confederacy. Education
(or the lack thereof) has been the primary weapon used to dismantle the American republic;
perhaps it can be used to restore it as well. |
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| The
Confederate Society of America has also taken the initiative to provide the foundational
impetus for a unified effort within the movement. The Confederate Alliance broke ground in
Charleston in 1999 by bringing together representatives from many Confederate and other related groups. Working together for common cause is something we have
never been too good at but it is something that needs be done if we are to truly become an
effective force. |
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| The road
ahead is not an easy one, but things worth achieving seldom come without hard work. It has
been said that the price of liberty is eternal vigilance and the consequences of
"sleeping on your watch" are summed up quite clearly by John Curran in his Speech
Upon the Right of Election: |
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| "It is the common
fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon
which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance, which if he break, servitude is
at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt." |
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| There is
no doubt that American's have been less than vigiliant in protecting their liberties. We
have become mentally-lazy. Sitting in front of the boob-tube takes little mental effort,
while studying and understanding Von Mises' On Human Action takes enormous mental
prowess. CSA's mission is to get people to understand this, to motivate them to become the
modern Calhouns, Monroes, and Jeffersons, men who knew that wisdom came from God but
knowledge came from the lessons of history. It is from history that we shall either learn our lessons or doom ourselves
to the "common fate of the indolent?" |
