Alabama became the fourth state to secede from the Union 150 years ago yesterday, but the anniversary saw very little recognition.
Josh Rothman, director of the University’s Summersell Center for the Study of the South, said he felt the state should commemorate, but not celebrate, the historical event.
“From a modern perspective, there’s very little to cheer about a political maneuver whose primary purpose was to ensure that the state of Alabama could continue to enslave roughly half its population without fear of interference,” Rothman said. “That said, I think a failure to commemorate secession would be a tremendous mistake, lest we forget the causes and consequences of a movement that nearly destroyed the United States.”
On Jan. 11, 1861, the state joined South Carolina, Mississippi and Florida as one of the first states to secede. Rothman said he imagined that students at the University, which had just been turned into a military college, were pretty enthusiastic about the state’s secession.
“[I think they were] under the impression that they would be able to defeat the Union in any war that might result from it,” Rothman said.
On Jan. 11, 1961, the centennial of Alabama’s secession, Rothman said the day went much differently than yesterday.
“I don’t know all the details, but there was a state commission, Confederate balls were held, the Confederate flag was prominently displayed at many events, church bells rang when the state re-enacted Jefferson Davis’ inauguration, and so on,” Rothman said. “The historical interpretation on offer, meanwhile, was right in keeping with the mythology of the ‘Lost Cause,’ in which the war was about state’s rights. Slaves, to the extent they got mentioned at all, were loyal, plantations were places largely of romance and whites in the North and South could reunite based on their shared military glory.”
In regard to the statewide celebrations in 1961, Rothman said it was important to bear in mind that the centennial happened during the height of the civil rights movement and was as much about reaffirming segregation and white supremacy as it was about commemorating the Civil War itself.
“Today, you couldn’t really get away with the kind of celebration they had in 1961, which is for the best, given that it was rooted in a distorted and patently racist understanding of the past,” he said.
Josh Gray, a junior majoring in international relations and political science, said he felt the state should not celebrate the sesquicentennial anniversary of secession.
“Time is too precious to be wasted,” Gray said. “Yes, seceding from the Union is a piece of Alabama history, but so are plenty of other things. Why celebrate a division from being a united American people? Celebrating the secession is celebrating a lot more. It’s celebrating the time period, too. The Alabamians who prefer to recognize the secession recognize it. There’s no need to waste the valuable time of others.”
Although the day passed rather quietly in Alabama, South Carolina officials have already announced a planned celebration that will feature a Confederate Heritage Ball, organized by the Confederate Heritage Trust and sponsored by the Sons of Confederate Veterans, as well as reenactments, historical readings and other events.
Elizabeth Singleton, a junior majoring in apparel and textiles design, said while she understands why some states may want to remember the historical events, she doesn’t think major celebrations that draw a lot of attention to them should be planned.
“It’s definitely something that should be remembered, but not necessarily celebrated,” she said.
As for Tuscaloosa’s plans to commemorate the event, the Summersell Center for the Study of the South, housed in ten Hoor Hall, has planned a Civil War Sesquicentennial Roundtable to be held April 11 in Room 205 of Gorgas Library.
According to the Summersell Center’s website, the roundtable discussion will feature “leading scholars from both the University of Alabama and elsewhere [who] will consider the significant military, political, social and cultural considerations that faced the United States and its residents as the war approached and then began in earnest.”
More details about the event will be released later in the semester.
