Confederaphobia: An American Epidemic

For 150 years Confederate monuments and other memorials dotted the American landscape. Few people objected. After all, a third of the American people are descended from Confederate soldiers and Congress has officially and legally declared Confederates to be "American veterans." That time has passed. There is an epidemic of hate and fear sweeping the land; a wave of hostility and intolerance that shows no sign of slowing or stopping; its fury is directed at Southern symbols-flags, monuments, and other displays-in fact everything Southern now appears to be a target.
Paul C. Graham has courageously examined this case of mass hysteria; a condition he has aptly dubbed "Confederaphobia." "It's one thing, " writes Graham, "to acknowledge that the meaning of symbols is one of perspective. It's quite another thing to have the meaning dictated by ideologues who are not participants in the cultural tradition .