The Piedmont Chronicles
~ est. 2010 ~
[State of Georgia]
[Newton County]
My name is Marshall McCart. My Great-Great-Grandfather was William Marion McCart. He enlisted with the E 53 Infantry in Covington, GA to serve the Confederate States of America in the War Between the States. He was wounded several times and was treated at the Confederate hospital in Richmond, VA. He was the namesake of his father, William McCart, and settled in Newton Co. GA, by way of a wagon train from Abbeville, SC during the 1840's. Like so many, he answered the call of his great state and fought, valiantly, for that "lost cause."Growing up I was a proud supporter of "Confederate Heritage." "Heritage, not Hate," was the motto. I believed it then; I still do. In the early 1990's, I participated in multiple reenactments. Up until the late 1990's, my key-chain was that of the battle emblem of the Confederacy, also known as the the St. George Cross.
However, I reached a point where I didn't want to carry the key-chain anymore. I reached a point where, to quote the Alabama Shakes, "I [didn't] want to fight no more," No, I reached a point where I got it. What is "it?" Basically, just good old-fashioned sympathy. I realized, especially after my time at University in Athens, GA, that the field of argument was beyond me. I realized that nothing I could say, especially if I had that battle emblem prominent on my person, was going to do any good.
There have been so many things to come out lately:
A fellow 6th-generation Newton Countian offered up this.
A former Bulldog put this out there.
A well-known fellow southern Liberty-activist added this.
Please read all three of the previous links. Please. It's vital that you do so, and you'll be glad you did...
Here's the hard truth:
For those of you worried about "them" sandblasting Stone Mountain, doing away with all Confederate memorials, or anything else of the like - just keep doing what you're doing. I've got a hard truth to tell you - in a couple of generations, white folks will be the minority. That's just the facts - the demographic data.
I realized a few years back that if the principles of the Republic - nothing to do with the "Republican Party," mind you, but the actual tenants of the Republic form of government - were to endure, then we were going to have to win the battle of hearts and minds. We were going to have to earn it. To share that light.
It's the same with the heritage of many of our ancestors. We have the win that battle of ideas. And how do we do that? We've got to be real with ourselves, and with them. The Civil War was fought over slavery. And States' rights. But ultimately slavery. You can do the research. In Georgia's statement of secession, it - slavery - was mentioned a couple of dozen times. Nothing about States' Rights, though.
Another hard truth - the battle emblem was purely and only resurrected for the purposes of maintaining segregation and racism. That's the facts, jack. Again, do the research. As a true State's Rights advocate, I wouldn't be presumptuous enough to say the South Carolina "must" remove the Confederate Battle Emblem from their State Capital Grounds. That's up to the duly elected legislature of that great state; however, just as an individual with an opinion, I'd say this - "take it down."
If you want to ignore this, you do so at your ancestry's peril.
There's nothing wrong with admitting that you're wrong. In fact, it's rather honorable. Hell, tell yourself that you're just punting the ball, as it were, if you have to. Do whatever you've got to do to swallow this pill. You need to do it. There's no other way, in my estimation.
As always, I remain optimistic. I still think we're striving for that more perfect union. It's never easy. That's just the way it is...
Marshall McCart
Covington, GA
6.23.15
