SCV RESPONSE TO GEORGIA GOVERNOR DEAL'S REMOVAL OF CONFEDERATE MEMORIAL DAY FROM THE STATE CALENDAR

(ATLANTA - August 7, 2015)  "Sensitivity" has become the camouflage for censorship in modern America. Current Governor Nathan Deal has moved to strip the reasons for two of Georgia's most significant holidays without explanation. But the reason can certainly be inferred: it is the mistaken belief that as an expression of sympathy, Georgia's history must be scrubbed in response to a criminal act in another state.      

The Governor's act is wrong on every level.

In April, 1861 Abraham Lincoln mobilized the largest army in American history up to that time to invade the South. The State of Georgia called forth her men of military age to resist the on-coming invasion. During the course of the War for Southern Independence, approximately 130,000 Georgians joined Georgia military units, fought valiantly and did their duty. An estimated 33,000 Georgia Veterans made the ultimate sacrifice and died, along with a countless number of Georgia civilians. A far greater number were wounded and maimed for life.

In the spring of 1866, the Ladies Memorial Association of Columbus, Georgia passed a resolution to set aside one day annually to memorialize the Confederate dead. The date for the holiday was April 26, the first anniversary of Confederate General Johnston's surrender to Federal General Sherman at Bennett Place, North Carolina. For many in the South, particularly in the east, that marked the official end of the War. In 1874, the Georgia General Assembly approved legislation adding as a new public holiday "The 26th day of April in each year - Confederate Memorial Day."

The disgraceful action taken by Governor Deal to remove the name of a State holiday that honors Georgia's veterans is repugnant to the Sons of Confederate Veterans. Under current U.S. Federal Code, U.S. Public Law 85-425: Sec. 410 Confederate veterans are deemed equivalent to all other American veterans. Georgia citizens and veterans should be outraged of this blatant act of disrespect to veterans who served their State and Country honorably and with valor.

We view this as a part of the on-going process of the political correct to "rename and/or remove" our Country's historical and Christian Holidays. Even now throughout Georgia and our Country's schools Christmas is referred to as winter break and George Washington's birthday is now called "Presidents' Day".

We would encourage the citizens of Georgia to contact Governor Nathan Deal's office and their State Representatives and Senators to express their concerns over of this act of dishonor against Georgia's veterans and ask that this decision be reversed and laws be created to protect the holidays, monuments and symbols that honor Georgia's veterans.      

"Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set." Proverbs 22:28

SCV Calls for Federal Investigation in Death of Black Confederate Supporter

Posted on July 22, 2015 on the SCV Heritage Defense Website - http://www.scvheritagedefense.org/s-c-v-calls-for-federal-investigation-in-death-of-black-supporter/

Commander in Chief Kelly Barrow of the Sons of Confederate Veterans has requested that Attorney General Loretta Lynch direct the Civil Rights Division of the United States Justice Department to launch an investigation into the suspicious death of Mississippi political activist Anthony Hervey.

Hervey, 49, of Oxford, Mississippi was killed when the automobile he was driving was forced off of Highway 47 north of Oxford on Sunday morning, July 19th. A passenger who survived the crash reported that their car had been forced off the road by a pursuing car.

Arlene Barnum told authorities that she and Hervey were returning from a Confederate Flag rally in Alabama when the incident occurred.  According to Barnum, a silver car with several African/American males chased their Ford Explorer and forced it off the road, where it flipped several times.  Both Hervey and Ms. Barnum are also African/Americans.

Anthony Hervey was well known in the Oxford community for his outspoken views supporting Confederate history and heritage. He was the author of Why I Wave the Confederate Flag, Written by a Black Man: The End of Niggerism and the Welfare State
Commander Barrow praised Hervey’s independent thinking and his courage in supporting Confederate Heritage.

“We are deeply saddened by the death of a friend, and we ask that the Justice Department immediately join in this investigation. Mr. Hervey was likely killed because of his color and his beliefs.”

“We also call upon the President and leaders of the Democratic and Republican Parties, along with the NAACP, to condemn the illegal and widespread destruction and vandalism of Confederate symbols. Their support of this cultural cleansing has created a very divisive atmosphere in the South and by their silence they have created the impression that they support these hostile and destructive actions. This is not the road to brotherhood and understanding.”

Dragoons Participate in Prattville 4th of July Parade

Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp 1524 members and family participated in the Prattville 4th of July parade and were very well received. As the Dragoons entry moved along the parade route, spontaneous applause and cheers arose from the crowd often rising to their feet.  Demand for the mini Confederate Battle flags and SCV recruiting coins was at an all time high. All the candy brought to offer to the children lining the parade was also dispensed including Tootsies and Pixie sticks. After the tumultuous time that Southern Heritage has experienced since the Charleston shootings, this reception was a very positive, uplifting experience. Organizers of the parade wanted all veterans to be recognized and veterans in our group were Bill Myrick, Tyrone Crowley, James Spears, Tom Crowley and Larry Spears. Other Dragoons present were Commander Stuart Waldo and family, 2nd Lt. Commander George Jenks and Forrest Waldo.

The Dragoon Entry for the 4th of July Parade

Commander Waldo Provides a mini-Battle Flag to a Young Parade Spectator

Dragoons Own Charlie Graham New Montgomery Advertiser Guest Columnist

Montgomery Advertiser, Thursday 23 July 2015, page 8A

Over time, telling of history can become distorted


There are a lot of smart people who read this newspaper and the smarter they get, the more opinionated they get. Don’t get me wrong, ignorant people have opinions, too. Opinions fascinate me. It can be most disconcerting trying to determine agendas from opinions.



Being a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat or Republican is difficult due to nuance or, in some cases, vast disagreement on few principles. I love to read the letters and op-eds. After reading them regularly, you get to know writers by name, ideology and philosophy. You learn whether to fasten your seatbelt or take a sedative before reading the letter.



As John Norris stated in a recent column, if a lie is repetitiously told to a conducive mind it will eventually be conceived as truth. Incidentally, I like John Norris’ opinions, which are primarily regarding financial advice and conditions. His positions may extend into other areas of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.



We are continually subjected to those ill-conceived lies that become perceived as opinion or maybe propaganda by the purveyor but presented as truth. I would hope that they don’t actually believe some of this stuff they try to sell us. It would indeed take a conducive mind with very little else in it to buy it, but they exist.



Up until about 30 years ago I walked the Earth blissfully patriotic, not questioning much around me, until I noticed that I was hearing a different spin on critical issues and history contradictory to what I heard 25 years prior to that. I wanted to find out why a certain segment of our society was being programmed to dislike or hate me.



I was confronted with an intra-U.S. educational process similar to what we are told that the young Mideast Muslims are taught about us Westerners. U.S. history became a hobby.



I by no means profess to be a proficient historian, but in my studies I have absorbed a more thorough understanding of our history and, through that, what’s going on today. I read from the old history books written when the activity addressed was fresh in the minds of the writers. As time passes, the repetitious deviations obscure reality. I’m still a patriot, but it can be arduous when I witness my government participate in the obliteration of reality while advocating equal protection to all but abdicating it for some.



An intrinsic difficulty I have with complete patriotism today is witnessing federal propaganda in process. Take the sign in front of Riverwalk Stadium that says down the street is the location of one of the most hellacious prisons with the most despicable conditions for housing Union soldiers imaginable. Such historic markers lead one to believe that the Confederate prison was the worst place a human could be.



That’s not far from wrong until you visit the Northern prisons. The Confederate prison at Andersonville, Ga, was developed into a federal shrine themed to illustrate the dastardly character of Confederates.



No mention is ever made at such locations that the first step of the war by the Union was to set up blockades all around the Southern states to prevent them from receiving supplies of any sort from outside. At the same time the Union armies would destroy anything edible (crops and livestock) in their paths throughout the South that they didn’t eat themselves. The Confederate soldiers were basically barefoot and malnourished throughout the war.



It was not by choice at Confederate prisons that the prisoners were not adequately fed. For a while there were prisoner swaps between the North and the South that would lessen the population at places like Andersonville. Abraham Lincoln put a stop to the swaps because he drafted plenty of healthy, well-fed men and, besides, the Confederates who were swapped would return to the battlefield.



None of this is ever talked about at such places enshrined by the federal government. No shrine was built at Elmira, N.Y., where thousands of Confederates died in unsanitary conditions as starving and freezing were purposely imposed upon the prisoners. The warden at Elmira returned a large sum of money to the U.S. Treasury at the war’s end that should have been spent on the prisoners.



There was no money in Andersonville and the warden was hanged by the federal government after the war. This Confederate warden was also dismembered and his body parts were showcased at various functions. This fact is one that keeps disappearing from historical presentations. 



Charlie Graham writes from Prattville. His column appears on alternate Thursdays. Send email to grahamcharlie@gmail.com.


AL Division SCV Press Release - CBS ATLANTA FACING LAWSUIT BY SONS OF CONFEDERATE VETERANS

CBS ATLANTA FACING LAWSUIT BY SONS OF CONFEDERATE VETERANS

(ATLANTA - August 3, 2015) On Sunday, CBS 46 in Atlanta featured a story on their television newscast, on their website, and on their Facebook and social media pages about a supposed resurgence of the KKK in Paulding County. Prominently featured with the story, however, was the legally registered logo of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, an organization which is in no way affiliated with the Klan. The Sons of Confederate Veterans was founded in 1896 by actual sons of the Confederate veterans and was charged by the veterans, themselves, with providing the true history of the South to future generations. The SCV is an historical preservation and geneological association and is open to members of all races who have Confederate ancestors, including black Americans of whom the organization has members.

Before the end of the day on Sunday, state officials of the Georgia Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) had already contacted CBS 46 and ordered an immediate removal of the organization's logo, as well as an online and on-air apology by station management. Screen shots of the content were captured by members of the SCV and sent to state and national headquarters. Even if a retraction is made by the station, SCV leaders in Georgia have indicated that they will likely pursue legal action against the station for what is viewed as a blatant and intentional error on the part of CBS 46 and its staff to associate the SCV with the KKK.

The Sons of Confederate Veterans vehemently affirm today that 1) there is no connection between the SCV and the KKK, 2) the SCV condemns the use of the Confederate battle flag and all Confederate symbols by any hate group whatsoever, and 3) the SCV intends to aggressively pursue legal action against any and all individuals, businesses, and governments which violate the laws regarding the protection of Confederate symbols, flags, and monuments and the good name of the Sons of Confederate Veterans.

For more information about the Sons of Confederate Veterans or any of this year's planned events to commemorate the Sesquicentennial of the War, contact the Georgia SCV at 404-271-8473 or online at www.GeorgiaSCV.org

END RELEASE

Cherokee Brasher
Chief of Heritage Defense
Alabama Division, SCV &
Army of Tennessee Heritage Coordinator
cherokeebob@earthlink.net

Standout Quality in Southern People

Letter to the Editor of the Montgomery Advertiser from Benjamin Austin  of Selma on Sunday, July 26, 2015, page 5E:

‘Standout quality’ in Southern people, not Constitution 



Vanzetta McPherson (retired magistrate judge) stated no real differences between the Confederate States Constitution and the United States Constitution excepting CS slavery provisions. She is right and wrong.



That the CS Constitution was based, “near verbatim,” on the U.S. Constitution was found curious by the judge, but illustrates that Southerners believed in the U.S. Constitution and were content living under it. The problem was that Northern politicians were violating the Constitution and usurping the individual states’ constitutional authority at the expense of the Southern states.



She couldn’t find a “standout quality” in the CS Constitution. The “standout quality” in “Southern heritage” she was looking for isn’t in the Constitution, but in the people who, like their grandfathers before them, exercised the right to secede from an oppressive union. That the majority of the Southern people, including the less than 10% who practiced the abomination of slavery, were willing to fight and die for what they believed in is that “standout quality” she seeks.



The Confederate flag was their banner, their rallying point and with it at their front over 300,000 died in defense of their homeland while resisting an overreaching and abusive central government. A people willing to stand against tyranny and oppression is what that flag represents.



I will not surrender its true meaning to hate groups or the hysterical demagogues manipulated by those wishing to remove its true history from the people.



Judge, you failed to mention slavery was protected in the U.S. Constitution as well. Did you forget?

Benjamin Austin

Selma

Petitioning the Alabama State Legislature for the Heritage Protection Bill

On Monday July 13th, many compatriots of the Sons of Confederate Veterans went to the Alabama State Capitol to petition their representatives to support SB-12, the Monument Protection Bill.  More support is needed and thousands should show at the state house the first of August to show support for this legislation.  The following are accounts from Monday July 13th:

There was a big turn out for the state house to meet with representatives and senators today (Monday July 13, 2015). I hope (everyone) got to talk with many, I know I did. Seems like we have lots of support! If you go inside,  we cannot go on the floor so we had two options: 1.) get there at 3pm and meet with as many legislators as we could and we did or 2.) rally and flag outside while they are meeting. Gotta tell you I  know that what we did today made an impression on getting our heritage bill passed. I have cards from many legislators who will help.  I hope they saw all of you in the galley today !  Suggestion for the next event, they will come back on August 3^rd which is Monday, they will meet and Wednesday is generally committee day. THAT IS THE DAY YOU NEED TO BE OUTSIDE AND RALLY WITH SPEAKERS AND FLAGS!

- Mike Williams, AL Div SCV Adjutant

Everyone (at the state capitol) today did a good job representing the SCV and expressing our views. I was in Senator Bill Holtzclaw's office & he took the handouts and asked questions about the Tennessee and Arkansas bills. (These legislators) work for us but they work for all of us. I saw all kinds of folks with different interests doing the same thing we were doing, moving from office to office, talking to whoever they could grab. I appreciate everyone that was there today but we could use a hundred more folks there to help spread out. By the time you stood in line to get into their office it was time for them to go to the floor. I will give Senator Holtzclaw a big thumbs up. He met with three of us plus a young lady and he did not try to rush us. He and Carl talked about the marine corp and we found out he has a Confederate connection. General James Thadeus Holtzclaw of Montgomery (whose grave is cared for by Adjutant Mike Williams as part of the AL SCV Guardian program).

- Jimmy Hill, AL Div SCV 1st Lt Commander

There was a good turn out at the state capitol. Spoke with people that had come down

from north Alabama and some that come up from Mobile. Passed out flyers "Reasons to Support Heritage Bill".  Members of Camp 1524 also flagged the Confederate monument.

Four Prattville Dragoons present were:

    George Jenks

    Brent Jenks

    Tom Crowley

    Philip Edwards

    Larry Spears

    New and potential members, Colby Carlock and Jonathan Whitfield

- George Jenks, Prattville Dragoons, Camp 1524 2nd Lt.