Reflection Essay

How is the American Civil War Relevant today? Our Civil conflict that took place
roughly 150 years ago will not be likely forgotten by any American citizens. The Civil
War cause for many of the great changes that either plague or exalt our nation. Many
relics of the Civil War are still on display in public areas of the country, but that is soon
changing. Many of the ideological battles that were protested and fought over during
that era are still prevalent today in some areas of the US.

During the Civil War the northern Union fought to reconnect the broken United
States and in doing so lifted the chains of bondages that held the African American
population captive. Many forms of stigma still revolve around these oppressed racial
groups today among others that have immigrated overseas. Racist radical movements
were born during and after the Civil War, such as the Klu Klux Klan. In recent months
there has been much more racial movements and protests by this and similar parties in
the southern United States.

In addition to this, many state governments are relocating Confederate

memorials and Statues. Many of these relics were crafted after the wars conclusion and
present the historical culture that is found in these areas where they stand or stood.
Many US citizens of the south are furious at these actions taken and still cling to times
long past.

Even though many current events drive the argument that this war is still driving
the US apart, however, I enjoy these remarks made by Robert Hicks of the New York
Times. The Civil War sealed us as a nation... The novelist and historian Shelby Foote
said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as these United
States, but after we became the United States. Somehow, as divided as we were,
even as the war ended, we have become more than New Yorkers and Tennesseans,
Texans and Californians. (The New York Times, Why the Civil War Still Matters by
Robert Hicks, July 2 , 2013, Paragraph 14) This section from his article Why the Civil
War Still Matters explains clearly to me that there is progression. If we take a moment to
appreciate the extensive strides our nation has taken with the civil liberties of racial
groups. We cannot forget either the equal opportunities that women have earn for
themselves from leaders such as Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Stanton.

Our nation celebrates and enjoys many renewed freedoms gained from the Civil
War. We can celebrate the progress that our nation has achieved and sustained. There
is still work to do in order to form land of tranquility and peace, but this one event help
spark movements that have forever shaped America into the nation that she is today.