Diverse ethnic groups can still all get along

Providence has brought varied ethnic groups together to form America as it is today. There has always been change and resistance to change. In the process, we have let history stand as written; that is, until recently. The city council of New Orleans just voted to remove the statues of General Robert E. Lee from all of their public buildings.

Lee was one of the more organized, dedicated generals in the history of the United States. He was the son of Henry Lee, who distinguished himself in the Revolutionary War as a brilliant commander of one of George Washington’s cavalry units that cleared the way for Washington to enter New York. Young Lee had a profound respect for George Washington and the war that lifted America from the grip of English rule. Both the Union and Confederacy recruited him to serve their cause. He was torn emotionally as to which side he should serve as a leader. After a long deliberation, he determined he could not fight against his Virginia countrymen.

His private life was equally stellar. Long before the Civil War, he freed the few slaves he inherited. He was not for the secession of Virginia. He believed that slavery was not good for the slaves or their owners. We should all have his characteristics.

Slavery was one issue of the Civil War but not the catalyst for unrest. The New England area had far more representatives in Congress than the South, and southerners believed that their needs for roads and infrastructure were not being addressed. Additionally, shipments of European merchandise were directed to ports in New York where agents added their fees before reloading and forwarding shipments to Charleston and other southern ports. Most southern cotton was marketed by New York brokers, who established the market value.

Slavery, in the Western Hemisphere, began in the late 1500s by Spaniards supplying the need for workers in their Cuban and Caribbean sugar fields. The European traffickers found a ready supply in Africa, where unemployment was extremely high. Afrikaners preyed on their own people, tricking many into believing they were to be employed abroad. From the 1500s to 1868, 12 million slaves were rounded up and purchased by the traffickers. Two million died in the holds of the ships during transit. About 60,000 of the survivors were sold in United States markets.

Colonial laws allowed the slaves to marry, raise children, seek relief from cruel owners and, in infrequent instances, buy their own freedom. Slaves were housed, clothed, and fed, or assigned plots to grow their produce. Whole families worked long hot hours in the cotton fields. Many women served as maids, servants and overseers of owner’s children. Even so, many slaves were better off than some of the poor white neighbors.

Slavery was a terrible practice and thankfully is behind us. The black community should also put it behind them and realize that in most instances, their slave ancestors were far better off than the Afrikaners left behind. That may sound insensitive, but the fact remains that many other minorities have managed to do so, e.g., native American Indians. Let’s all live together in harmony.

Leonard Brant is a Post Falls resident.