Civil War's Lasting Effects

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/04/12/opinion/12oped-art/12oped-art-blog427.jpg

This is a link to a picture and article that was in the New York Times the other day. This was about the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Ft. Sumter (the first battle of the civil war). The article talks about many of the things we have been talking about in class concerning race. One of the most moving quotes of this peice was: "In our smug insistence that race is no longer a factor in our society, we are continually brought up short by the old code words and disguised prejudice of a tribalism beneath the thin surface of our “civilized” selves.""
The article suggests that the historiography of the Civil and Slavery entailed a shift in reality. In the post civil war years, the motives for war have been blurred, to not include race as a factor. Now, looking at that historical moment from a modern perspective, it is not a question that slavery was at the heart of the conflict. But it is interesting how for so many years, the race/slavery factor had been pushed to the side when looking at the Civil War. Perhaps this plays into the idea that whites have the privileged to not think about race, therefore did not think to this issue a as a major driving force for our Nation's bloodiest war. Was it shame that caused this, or stubbornness?

Meredith Cotter, Post #20