Re: (TV) Heard ole Neil put us down

[andy fekete <andy.fekete@gmail.com>]

Not so fast.

I grew up in Richmond, VA, and I think "Southern Man", for all it's
excess, was quite justified for the time.

The racism in the South during the 60s and 70s was intense and quite
overt, nothing subtle about it at all.  My high school was Douglas
Freeman (the famous Lee biographer), the school song was Dixie, the
football team was the Freeman Rebels, the school flag was the Stars
and Bars, the school colors were grey, and the majorettes pranced in
sexy outfits styled after Confederate officer's uniforms.  But those
were just symbols: the blatant racism that was tolerated -- no,
expected -- as a matter of course in everyday social discourse, and
the actions that were acknowledged, allowed and tacitly approved as a
matter of course, at ever level of society, was simply appalling.

The whole thing was utterly mystifying to us, as we were immigrants
(from Hungary), and weren't raised with the requisite mindset.  Modern
Southern revisionists like to pretend it wasn't a big deal, but it was
definitely there, alright, and very, very ugly.  I doubt it is
possible for anyone, even a Canadian hippie peacenik, to
over-exaggerate how pervasive and ugly it truly was.

-A

Boat Burning / Amps Do Furnish A Room

On Thu, Feb 19, 2009 at 8:17 PM, Scott Simpson <SSimpson@nyc.rr.com> wrote:
> I feel the love.  Hugs all around.
>
> But, it's a Southern thang, y'all.
>
> Scott Simpson
>
> 212 795 2846
>
> Yes Rudy, a community organizer
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