Bacon's Rebellion

Democracy Thrives in Sunlight

Time to Go

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by

Dick Hall-Sizemore
in

Lee statue in U.S. Capitol

Two Virginia members of Congress have proposed replacing the statue of Robert E. Lee representing Virginia in the U.S. Capitol. I applaud this move. Being a lifetime Virginian who grew up immersed in the legacy of the Confederacy and the glory of Lee and Virginia, I think it is time for Virginia to move beyond its misguided glorification of the Civil War. I would like visitors to the U.S. Capitol to identify the Commonwealth with something other than slavery and the Civil War.

I am a little ambivalent regarding the replacement for the Lee statue. The Congressional proponents favor Oliver Hill. I have recently finished two books about Hill:  Margaret Edd’s wonderful We Face the Dawn and Hill’s entertaining and enlightening autobiography, The Big Bang. My admiration and appreciation of Hill are greater than ever. He deserves to be honored. My only reservation is that he does not come across as a “son of Virginia.” He was not proud to be a Virginian. Indeed, he had no reason to be; the state did everything it could to lessen his humanity. He spent his life fighting the state-supported system that tried to keep him and people like him from realizing their potential, all because of the color of their skin.

From that perspective, I would lean to selecting John Marshall to replace Lee as Virginia’s representative in the U.S. Capitol’s National Statuary Hall. Not only was he prominent in Virginia government and politics, but, as Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, he probably did more than anyone else to establish the strong central government that has characterized the United States.

However, Virginia already has one representative from the early national period in the Capitol: George Washington. Perhaps it is time to move away from our obsession with our history and present to the nation and the world someone who is representative of the modern Virginia. In the end, it was Oliver Hill, who (along with his law partner Spotswood Robinson) was the person from Virginia who was most instrumental in dragging Virginia and the rest of the nation closer to the goal enunciated by that other Virginian, “all men are created equal.”

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23 responses to “Time to Go”

  1. James A. Bacon Avatar
    James A. Bacon

    I’ve got to say, the U.S. Capitol seems a strange place to have a statute of Robert E. Lee.

    1. Dick Hall-Sizemore Avatar
      Dick Hall-Sizemore

      Each state gets two statues in the National Statuary Hall collection. In 1909, Virginia chose Lee to be one of its representatives. But, you are right; it does seem ironic.

  2. Jane Twitmyer Avatar
    Jane Twitmyer

    I like your thoughts about the statuary. I not not know about Hill but will try to find We Face the Dawn to understand more about the historical denial that has come up so often recently.
    TKS

  3. Reed Fawell 3rd Avatar
    Reed Fawell 3rd

    After the tragic death of Lincoln on April 14, 1964, 5 days after Appomattox, Robert E. Lee did more than any man alive to keep the peace between the north and south, and hold the nation together, that otherwise would have fallen into total chaos, given President Andrew Johnson’s gross incompetence, and those who narrowly failed to remove him from office by reason of impeachment.

    In 1909, Washington was a deeply southern town of re-emergent racism, as evidenced by the rapid rise of Woodrow Wilson, a Virginia born southerner of deeply held racist beliefs despite the fact he turned down the presidency of the University of Virginia, to become President of Princeton in 1902 before becoming Governor of New Jersey in 1910 then the nation’s president in 1913.

    1. johnrandolphofroanoke Avatar
      johnrandolphofroanoke

      My third great grandfather, Private Marcus Mills 49th Virginia once grabbed Traveller’s bridle and turned Marse Robert around. Lee was about to lead the counterattack into the Mule Shoe at Spotsylvania. Mills was remembered in Front Royal as the man who saved Robert E. Lee.

  4. Acbar Avatar
    Acbar

    Frankly I would select John Marshall, as having the right mix of significance both to the State as to the Nation. I nominate Patrick Henry as a backup.

    This is not so much “obsession with our history” as it is recognition that Virginia’s greatest contribution to the United States has been through its contributions through leadership to the Nation’s birth — and damned little since then! Certainly most Virginians fought to tear the Nation apart less than a century later, and that hardly deserves recognition in the United States Capitol building.

    The problem with Oliver Hill is, as you say, he’s not really known as, nor did he desire to be known as, a prominent Virginian. Plus — with all due respect for the argument that blacks (and women) were denied a prominent role in Virginia affairs before the later 20th century — I feel that it takes a good 100 years or so to weigh the relative contributions of any significant historical figure. That’s why it would be premature to consider, for example, Governor Wilder. Selecting Mr. Hill at this time smacks of trying too hard to make amends for past neglect, of virtue signaling by the few rather than a groundswell of widespread public knowledge and admiration of the man by the many. That said, I won’t lose any sleep over it. I’d rather tackle removing the Davis statue from Monument Avenue — and not to the U.S. Capitol, but to the UDC’s front yard, where the newly mounted statue at the VMFA can look down on it.

    Merry Christmas everyone!

    1. johnrandolphofroanoke Avatar
      johnrandolphofroanoke

      John Marshall might be the most important American never elected president. His court decisions will speak to us for centuries to come. Not bad for a Fauquier County boy born in a log cabin.

  5. Steve Haner Avatar
    Steve Haner

    The decision to remove Lee will be easier than the argument over replacing him. That’s probably why it has taken so long.

  6. LarrytheG Avatar
    LarrytheG

    One more Virginia statesman – James Monroe although he was a prodigious owner of slaves and advocated freed slaves return to Africa…

    I’ve always held Lee in high esteem.. and we have schools and roads and public memorials and buildings but he was also revered by the Jim Crow era folks and that’s when a lot of Lee memorials were done and the more I hear of that era the more I understand how black folks feel about it.

    I’m not sure just how “serious” those statues are as Arkansas is replacing one of theirs with a statue of Johnny Cash, so is Dolly Parton or Dwight Yokum far behind?

    The basic problem with statues and memorials is they may not represent everyone’s perspective – especially over time.

    I live near Bloody Angle in which many perished on both sides during the Civil War – it has memorials but no statues and the memorials are to those who died on both sides. Now that I’ve seen the hubbub in other places over memorials to specific leaders as opposed to memorials to soldiers – I think it was done right at Bloody Angle…

    Memorials are not history per se. They are ‘memorials’ to history according to the folks who put up the memorial. Not all memorials are received the same way by all folks in the here and now… the memorials are the way that SOME folks want to REMEMBER history – but not everyone and if one segment of society has few memorials to their culture – and all around them are memorials to other cultures… it can cause problems – as we are now seeing.

  7. johnrandolphofroanoke Avatar
    johnrandolphofroanoke

    Robert E. Lee is an essential American. Just ask Dwight Eisenhower, he said it best. Lee’s character, devotion to duty, and his spirituality are very special. Lee modeled himself after George Washington and even married his great grand daughter. Lee’s conduct from Appomattox on made reconciliation possible. Indeed, in many ways, Lee was Washington without the reward. Once a Christ like figure. Now “Marse Robert” must once again bear the cross for his generations sins. Therefore if Lee must be replaced there is only one other Virginian who meets the high standard of character and devotion to duty. George Catlett Marshall. I know he was born in Pennsylvania. But he is from the Marshall clan of Fauquier County and can claim to be one of John Marshall’s many descendants. He was educated at VMI. He was Chief of Staff and the architect of the WW2 victory while stationed at Fort Meyer. Marshall lived in his retirement years in Leesburg, VA. His home is preserved. VMI has an impressive museum and library dedicated to Marshall. His Cold War statesmanship helped Truman bring containment to life. Let us not forget the famous Marshall Plan. This great Virginian is also buried at Arlington (former home of Lee). Marshall and Lee have so much in common. Their simplicity, their faith, their impeccable character, and an endless devotion to duty.

    It will not be! This statue monument business is low hanging fruit that is easy to pick on. I suspect we will get Oliver Hill or someone along those lines. That is fine. Probably the best can be done given the circumstances. I know I am right though: George Marshall is the right Virginian for the Capitol. At least Marshall’s marble could be hailed as the only honest thing on Capitol Hill.

    1. Dick Hall-Sizemore Avatar
      Dick Hall-Sizemore

      I thought of George Marshall, too, but put the thought aside because he was not a native Virginian, but you make a good case for him. Maybe Virginia should just claim him.

    2. Acbar Avatar
      Acbar

      He and his wife plainly claimed Virginia as their home after the War years. We should reciprocate.

  8. LarrytheG Avatar
    LarrytheG

    I think Lee himself was a man of substance. He was not flawless at military strategy and he apparently had not that strong a motivation to political leadership after the war – or he was not the leader that people wanted?

    The problem is that the Jim Crow folks latched onto him as their hero and that worked well in the South/Virginia for a long time for white folks but not many black folks He was no hero to them and his association with Jim Crow pretty much took care of any later possibility of acceptance by blacks.

    Lee, Marshall, and many others will never be lost to history. The question is – who do we memorialize and to a certain extent who is “we” who decides who will – and who will not – be “memorialized”. Are all segements of our society participating in deciding who to memorialize? Is there consensus – across society?

    With Jim Crow – it is now apparent what they were doing with their efforts to “remember” but it was one-sided and denied other memorials from blacks. That was not going to stand forever. It was likely to end – and apparently we have come to that time.

  9. Steve Haner Avatar
    Steve Haner

    The record is clear. Lee was appalled by the hero worship during his lifetime and would have been deeply shamed by the near god-like status he was granted following his death. Washington’s presence in that American Pantheon is mandatory, but Virginia’s other representatives could easily rotate every few years. O.O. Hill works for me as the next one to be there.

    1. LarrytheG Avatar
      LarrytheG

      Lee – WAS appalled – but that did not change the Jim Crow folks who wanted/needed him to be the leader of the lost cause.

      It was not Lee’s fault but his elevation by the Jim Crow folks pretty much separated him from black folks when his name was put on schools and roads throughout the Commonwealth – along with other Confederate “heros”. For instance: Lee-Davis… hard to separate that once memorialized?

      White folks don’t see this the same way as black folks.

    2. Acbar Avatar
      Acbar

      Agreed, Steve. And your point, Larry, deserves reflection. Many modest, unassuming historical figures have been celebrated as heroes over their objections — or after their deaths — as symbols of causes they were swept up in, not as men and women whose leadership was distinguished less by egotism than by humility.

      I believe Lee was such a man. His initiative thwarted at Gettysburg, he nearly lost it all militarily in that slow retreat after Fredericksburg; suffered through that final hopeless winter at Petersburg, unable to persuade the government in Richmond to halt the slaughter; sought peace through surrender rather than follow orders to begin a futile guerilla war; then sought by example and hard work to rebuild his devastated State, starting with the education of a new generation. A lesser character would have been broken by such defeats.

      No question, after Lee’s death his image was embellished and co-opted by the promoters of the mythical Lost Cause. Which Lee is memorialized by the triumphal equestrian statue erected on Monument Avenue in 1890 — the man or the myth? Lee died in 1870. But whatever the fate of the statue, let us not forget the good he accomplished during his lifetime, the rebellion he essentially shut down by his decision to surrender, the lives he saved, the reconciliation he sought.

  10. Reed Fawell 3rd Avatar
    Reed Fawell 3rd

    John Marshall rivals Washington, Madison, and Jefferson in the constellation of American founders.

    Marshall was the only founder to largely invent the strong place of the third branch of American Government, it’s judiciary, lead by a truly supreme Supreme Court.

    Although by blood part of Virginia’s landed gentry, he was born and raised in relatively poor circumstances, a shunned outsider. As such, he best represents the unique American spirit and place of meritocracy in American society, how one’s merit lodged in a strong character can through work and will change the world for the better.

  11. TooManyTaxes Avatar
    TooManyTaxes

    How about a statue of Ralph Northam in blackface standing on the backs of adoring media personalities and throwing stacks of $100 bills? It’s the new Virginia.

    1. johnrandolphofroanoke Avatar
      johnrandolphofroanoke

      I would like to amend your Northam monument. Lets have Ralph, Fairfax, and Herring holding hands and skipping down the yellow brick road. I can’t believe all three have survived their scandals and thrived in the aftermath.

  12. LarrytheG Avatar
    LarrytheG

    No question that NOrthams blackface was really ignorant but that’s different than a racist heart that continues racist policies that we’d likely see from the likes of folks like Corey Stewart.

    Yeah – Northam and Herring deserve the hits they are getting but at the end of the day- black folks will pick them any day over the likes of Corey Stewart.

    that’s the reality – Northam is going to support removal of jim crow era symbols… Stewart would not.

  13. johnrandolphofroanoke Avatar
    johnrandolphofroanoke

    One thing is for certain. In fifty years nobody is going to remember the names Northam, Fairfax, or Herring. Lee’s statue will be long gone and forgotten that it was once there. Robert E. Lee’s legacy is going to survive. This man will be studied, discussed, revered, and reviled for many generations to come.

  14. TBill Avatar
    TBill

    George Mason not a contender?

  15. TooManyTaxes Avatar
    TooManyTaxes

    Once again, the problem is two sets of rules. Had Northam, Fairfax and Herring been Republicans, the media and the D.C. Deep State would be on them in a manner similar to the way they go after Trump. Trump has certainly caused most of his own problems, but it was clear from the date the Democrats’ goddess lost the election to Trump, there would be an all-out effort to get rid of or severely destroy the Trump presidency. Double standard.

    Had Northam been a Republican governor, we’d see the same all-out effort. I’ve written many times, at the federal level, I see no one lower than Nixon, Trump and the two Clintons. But Northam would need to climb a Mount Everest daily for decades to get in telescope range of the Evil Four. Northam not only appeared in blackface when he was an adult ready to practice medicine but lies about his actions and refuses to make personal amends, preferring to engage in virtue signaling and tossing around taxpayer dollars. I doubt anyone who blogs on BR could live with him- or herself if they engaged in this behavior. Yet, Northam gets a pass daily. He will never man up by admitting his behavior was wrong and trying to make personal amends, rather than corrupting the power of his office to buy forgiveness from the left.

    About the only redeeming thing I see is that 2019 is another year where several thousand more journalists continue to lose jobs. Perhaps, if they had ethical standards and tried to be unbiased reporters, some might still be working in their chosen profession.

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