Alabama and Mississippi Observe Confederate Memorial Day Amid Calls to Abolish State Holidays
On Monday, Alabama and Mississippi observed Confederate Memorial Day, a state holiday that pays homage to the old Confederacy, despite calls to abolish it. Legislation has been introduced in Alabama to remove or rename Confederate-related holidays, but the effort has yet to gain significant traction. Project Say Something founder Camille Bennett pointed out the hypocrisy of Alabama lawmakers pushing to ban so-called "divisive concepts" from being taught in state classrooms while at the same time honoring the Confederacy, which in itself is a divisive concept.
Meanwhile, an Alabama Senate committee rejected a proposal last week to separate the joint state holiday celebrating Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee and slain civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on the same day. The vote was split along racial lines, with white Republicans voting against it and Black Democrats voting for it. Several other Southern states, such as Louisiana, Georgia, and Arkansas, have already ended or renamed Confederate holidays.
Mississippi Public Broadcasting had historians read Mississippi's secession declaration, which states that slavery was the central issue. This continued recognition of Confederate holidays "speaks to the blatant disregard of the humanity of Black Alabamians," according to Bennett.