A few schools teach history. A lot of schools teach revisionist history. This is why we have a bunch of uneducated idiots in the streets tearing **** up.
Every statue of every human ever erected is put there to commemorate something, but it doesn't mean they were perfect or were above reproach (outside of Jesus). They were human after all. It's possible that Andrew Jackson did a tremendous amount of good for this country, while also doing some bad stuff. There's nuance in everything. Today's cancel culture isn't interested in nuance.
Perhaps there are a bunch of idiots running around due to revisionist history being taught. I met an endless stream of them while in school at MSU. My goodness the revisionist history they used to tell me- it was hilarious. But I would listen patiently because it was different from what I was taught so I found it valuable to learn, if for no other reason than it was eye opening to see so many taught revised history.
Many statues commemorate something, you are correct. It ends up a lot of people think that some things shouldnt be commemorated. And it ends up that perhaps some actions and events shouldnt be commemorated.
We should probably just have less idolization overall. Maybe that would be best. Have a higher standard. Not everyone's granpappy who fought in the War of Northern Aggression should be idolized.
Furthermore, some statues were absolutely created in an attempt to continue the status quo(whites in charge). Not all were done with that intent, but come on now- dont argue none were,
I don't see Mississippi celebrating "one particular 4 year stretch of history." But then again, I'm not looking for **** that isn't there.
If you never look, then you will never see.
The state of Mississippi is entrenched in Confederate history and culture. The ties between Mississippi and slavery continue because the state hasnt been able to move on, or rather it has chosen not to move on. Instead, it tries to straddle honoring the past(which is a celebration of that 4 year stretch of history) with being open and accepting. That balance act has clearly failed.
It ends up that when you create laws to oppress a group of people for decades and also terrorize them without repercussion, you are going to have a tough time changing how you are seen. This is especially true when entertainment(books and film) continue to bring up the horrors of your past.
Removing idolized statues of racists and oppressors wont fix everything, but its a damn good start.
See...this is your problem. You talk about monuments and memorials as "Mississippi celebrating one particular 4 year stretch of history." It's offensive and dishonest. Nobody is celebrating anything. These things happened 160 years ago, and monuments were built by those who lost loved ones. It's not a celebration, and it's not all of Mississippi condoning what happened back then.
You need to cut the man bun and grow up.
Lets lets set aside any memorials that were constructed by family who lost loved ones because I could see those being done at the time with at least some intent to 'honor' relatives. How do you explain away all the statues that went up many decades after the war ended and heavily around the time when whites were slowly losing their grip on outright oppression of blacks?
On a related note, how do you justify a school named after a Civil War general or the President of the Confederacy where over 90% of students in the district are black? Take Jefferson Davis Elementary in Greenwood for example- kids attend a school that honors a man who was so against the freedom of people due to the skin color of those students, that he was was the president of the Confederacy.
How the 17 can that be justified?