The governor of Mississippi has declared April to be both Confederate Heritage Month and Genocide Awareness Month.
Gov. Tate Reeves unpacked Genocide Awareness Month as a time to reflect on the “systematic destruction of lives” and noted it had “no place in society,” but he neglected to mention the devastating race-based institution of American slavery or the near destruction of Native American people by white colonizers in the country.
The Magnolia State’s top government executive declared also Confederate Heritage Month as a time to recognize the state’s Civil War history, a tradition initiated by his predecessors in 1993.
“April is the month when, in 1861, the American Civil War began between the Confederate and Union armies, reportedly the costliest and deadliest war ever fought on American soil,” read Reeves from the proclamation.
“As we honor all who lost their lives in the war, it is important for all Americans to reflect upon our nation’s past, to gain insight from our mistakes and successes, and to come to a full understanding that the lessons learned yesterday and today will carry us through tomorrow if we carefully and earnestly strive to understand and appreciate our heritage and our opportunities which lie before us,” the governor continued in the document.
During an April 8 news conference presenting the proclamation, Reeves was asked by a local reporter about his decision, “Do you believe that’s to conflate considering the documented history of killing and racism toward people of color in the Confederate South?”
A seemingly defiant Reeves responded, “Look, I signed the Confederate Heritage Month in the month of April in the same manner and fashion that the five governors that came before me, Republicans and Democrats alike for over 30 years, have done that. And we did it again this year. Didn’t think this was the year to stop doing it, so.”
Despite Reeves’ claim, one voice quickly objected, suggesting Reeves was being misleading.
Former Mississippi Gov. Ray Mabus, a Democrat that served in the capacity from 1988 to 1992 and one of the last five governors, said he never supported this initiative, saying, “My question for Gov Reeves is ‘so what’ if 5 Governors have signed it. Doesn’t make it right.”
He further tweeted his disdain for the proclamation, “The only heritages of the Confederacy as far as I can tell are slavery and treason.”
On the second proclamation, Reeves specifically identified the following genocides from three of the seven continents starting at the top of the 20th century: Armenia (1913); the Ukrainian Holodomor (1932); the Holocaust (1941); Cambodia (1972); Bosnia (1992); Rwanda (1994); and Darfur (2003).
Noting that, in part, genocide is “the systematic destruction of all or a significant part of a racial, ethnic, religious or national group …”
Not surprisingly, Reeves’ dual proclamation drew the ire of not only politicians, but also everyday citizens.
A local reporter tweeted that Reeves sidestepped questions on whether “he believes there is a conflict between declaring April as Confederate Heritage Month as well as Genocide Awareness Month.”
Others wondered where were America’s original sins. “So uh, did you just forget about Native Americans and all those black people we had shipped over to do our SLAVE labor?” read one tweet.
“You forgot the American Genocides. Like, all of them,” read another.
Mississippi State Director of the Southern Poverty Law Center Mississippi said n a statement, “It is unfortunate that the governor chooses to glorify the Confederacy — a traitorous government that fought against the United States for the right to enslave Blacks.”
Many have also pointed out the governor’s announcement comes in the aftermath of his signing the state’s highly contested critical race theory law on March 14, where he called CRT a curriculum of indoctrination created to “humiliate” whites.
Reeves, who said, on Fox News “there is not systemic racism in America,” said when signing the bill, “Students are being force-fed an unhealthy dose of progressive fundamentalism that runs counter to the principles of America’s founding,” implying falsely that CRT is being taught at the K-12 level.
“Children are dragged to the front of the classroom and are coerced to declare themselves as oppressors,” he continued. “That they should feel guilty because of their race, or that they are inherently a victim because of their race.”
