In 1995, while Westerman was driving his Confederate flag-adorned truck through his hometown of Guthrie, Ky., several carloads of black teenagers started following him. He was shot by one pursuer in a convenience store parking lot, apparently because of the flag he flew. As described by Tony Horwitz in Confederates in the Attic , Westerman s funeral truly took on the air of a Confederate hero s memorial. Jefferson Davis memorial, where the event took a political and openly racist turn. Increasingly, such extremist views have become characteristic of the contemporary neo-Confederate movement.
Many groups defend slavery, as well.
As it Was. Pride in the South Pushing these and similar themes, the neo-Confederate movement has grown substantially, providing a home for thousands of people with racist feelings who nonetheless seek the cover of groups that present themselves as mainstream. But it would be wrong to say that they speak for all Southern whites who show pride in their Southern heritage or interest in the history of the Confederacy. Shelby Foote, famed historian of the Civil War, decries what he sees as a perversion of Southern heritage by some. I think they ve succeeded in identifying Confederate heritage as dedicated to slavery.