Description

Many historians would argue that the worst contradiction in American history is the gap between the nation’s stated ideals (“liberty and equality”) and the times when those ideals were forgotten. When slavery was institutionalized 400 years ago in the colonies, a cancer was introduced into the body of the country. Although it was cut out after the Civil War, the legacy of slavery has now metastasized forming new tumors. The Lost Cause myth developed after the war as an interpretation that reshaped public memory. The Lost Cause myth had a lasting impact on the United States by influencing education, public memory, race relations, and political debates.Studying the myth helps explain not only the Civil War but explains how we have become a nation that can commit genocide of the native population, that condones racial violence and inequality, a gun culture that has led to unprecedented domestic violence and aggressive militarism and the culture of white supremacy. Understanding it is important because it shows how interpretations of history can shape national identity, public policy, and discussions about the past long after the events themselves.