SOLD OUT - Contesting Dixie: States’ Rights, Slavery, & the War over Confederate Memory

In the last few years perhaps more than at any time since the Civil War, monuments to Confederate leaders have become the focus of angry debate, resulting in violence in some American cities. President Trump's famously divisive remarks about protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia objecting to the removal of a statue to Robert E. Lee have triggered as much controversy, arguably, as any single incident of his presidency. But do Americans fully comprehend what the Confederacy represented, when taking sides on this hot issue? Why did eleven southern states in 1860-1861 take the drastic step of leaving the Union and creating their own nation, leading to a horrifically bloody civil war? What were its leaders hoping to accomplish? What did they fear about staying in the Union? Why does the removal of Confederate memorials provoke such a polarizing response today?

Back at the Seward House Museum by popular demand, this talk is given by Professor Robert E. May of Purdue University. An internationally renowned historian and the recipient of multiple teaching awards, May has written extensively on the Civil War era.

Admission: Members $10, General Public $15

THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT.