In an attempt to shame BLM, there have been many reports of statues of Lincoln defaced or slanderous remarks made by the movement.
Well it turns other that most of these claims are fabricated using photoshop or falsely attributing damage to the protesters.Photoshopped imageOriginal pictureBut this raises an interesting point: what kind of individual was Lincoln and should we judge people by our modern sensibilities or those at the time. I've seen many "lost causers" quote from Lincoln where he said that he was against African Americans acquiring racial equality in the US but you know what they say: context matters. In the mid 1850s, most people in the US were white supremacists and if he was openly anti-racist he wouldn't have been elected to any office where he would be able to make a difference for the slaves in the first place. He also entertained the idea that instead of becoming Americans, the freed slaves should be sent off to a colony in Africa or the Caribbean. However, he was not alone in thinking this way and a large portion of the African American population supported this idea well into the Civil Rights Movement 100 years on because they felt that they had no place in America (and I can't say I blame them for feeling that way).
Now as far as I know, Lincoln didn't leave any kind of authenticated written record about how he truly felt about racial equality so I'm not saying that he wasn't a racist, I'm just saying statements made during his campaign trail can't be trusted at face value. But what we can know with a much greater degree of certainty is what motivated John Wilkes Booth (along with James Earl Ray) to commit the deeds that he became infamous for. And on top of the blatant forgery, this is what makes reactionary types who use MLK and Lincoln to shave the moment so despicable; people who wanted to see African Americans kept in their place killed them too.
One thing we should remember is that up until Lincolns' death, reconstruction was working and African Americans were being elected to political offices. Judge people by their actions first, their words second.
What do you think of Abraham Lincoln and his relevance to current racial tensions?
"You and we are different races. We have between us a broader difference than exists between almost any other two races. Whether it is right or wrong I need not discuss, but this physical difference is a great disadvantage to us both, as I think your race suffer very greatly, many of them by living among us, while ours suffer from your presence. In a word we suffer on each side. If this is admitted, it affords a reason at least why we should be separated."--Honest Abe
0
0 Reply
Most Helpful Opinions
Anonymous
(45 Plus)
+1 y
It's common for people in this age to judge the actions of previous generations through the prism of their superficial and devisive modern thinking. I don't see how anyone can hope to understanding the motives and behaviours of past leaders without first embracing their contextual time period while letting go of their own prejudices for a time. I rather doubt that most have the dexterity and commitment for this. Which is why I doubt their accuracy and their sincerity.
We shouldn't judge people by our modern standards. Everyone would be a racist, sexist homophobic and so on. That doesn't mean they didn't do great things. And that our morals have changed just shows how far we've come. Our grand children will probably judge us for wearing clothes made kids in sweatshops.
They aren't any more than the civil rights movement was (or I should say IS because there's this misconception that the Civil Rights Movement ended in 1968. It didn't; it was put om hiatus shortly the second phase focusing on socioeconomic justice when its' leader was killed). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xsbt3a7K-8&t=190s BLM is essentially its' resumption.
There are degrees, I will submit but King and Malcolm were focused on the positive. BLM is not and that resumption will soon fall victim to consumption if it doesn't straighten out.
He ended slavery, then Democrats started KKK and used abortion to try to kill as many black people they could " since they were no longer useful to them".
And is that because of "reverse racism", the "soft bigotry of low expectations" or some other vain Bullshit pushed by the right to project their racist attitudes on the left?
