150 years ago this year, the war of Southern Oppression, often referred to as the Civil War, ended. The pitched battles and dividing lines helped shape a nation that believed that human beings are not the property of one another, and that states are not free to determine laws which violate the basic rights of citizens of the union.
While the battle ended in 1865, the war has left long lasting scars. Today, we see people embrace the pride and joy of the Southern Forces who fought for Oppression, and I think in light of the last few weeks, it is an ideal time to remember what that war really looked like.
Kansas, always a free state, was home to one of many atrocities to the war. While William Quantrill contended the taking of Lawrence was in retaliation for Osceola, Missouri, the two events had quite different methods. In the union capture of Osceola, drumhead trials were performed and executions occurred as the town was sacked; but specific orders were given that women, children and others were not involved.
Quantrill's raid of Lawrence, Kansas, however was a significantly different story. In the raid, the forces were out not only to sack a community viewed as a hotbed for anti-slavery activity, but also in a search for James Lane, a general within the union army who helped raise the 1st Regiment Kansas Volunteer Infantry, an infantry comprised of "colored free men", a feat that so enraged southerners that he was and others who attempted such acts were viewed as the most vile of traitors.
Through the time, and editing, unfortunately, we've come to remember the past not for the facts on the ground - the repeated raping, burning and massacre of women within Lawrence, Kansas.. as well as the deaths of 185 men & boys who were murdered simply for being able bodied, but through numerous internet discussions on it that equate it with everything from a sports rivalry of sorts to long posts of "well, they got what was coming" (see: Wikipedia).
While the issues that impacted my home state are significant, they are not the only signs that the war of Southern Oppression still goes on in many ways.
Numerous states in America feature the landmarks of the dead from a war that was fought because the South refused to give up on Oppression and Slavery. At the time of the US Civil war, more than 650k American soldiers died fighting. Some believe as many as 800-850k died during the time period of the war, if you include slaves you were murdered, towns that were sacked, and other factors.
No matter how we address it though, the war is still an iconic piece of US History. Whether it is the fury over the confederate flag, or the #blacklivesmatter protest at Netroots Nation, what we are coming to understand is that the discussion about the War of Southern Oppression has been one sided. For too long, those who have done the analysis have been outside of the situation..
Now, new voices come to the table, providing a different context to the war from the perspective not just of those who fought for the North or the South, but of those whose deaths aren't even fully quantified, and it is time we listen.