Melvin Missed Point Of Confederate Event
Letters To The Editor
Published: June 25, 2009
In response to Gary Melvin’s letter to the Bristol Herald Courier, I have to say he is missing the point of what our event was about. Mr. Melvin did not attend the memorial service and even your reporters missed the main objective, which was to honor our Southern ancestors. Had Mr. Melvin been there, and it was open to all who wished to attend, (except for anyone with ties to a hate group) he would have heard me dedicate the memorial to the men, women and children of Tennessee who suffered, bled or died during the war for “Southern Independence.” Also, the granite memorial that we dedicated must have not been “newsworthy.” That particular weekend was after Confederate Decoration Day, which Gov. Bredesen officially recognized.
To try to interject racism into a memorial is despicable to us who know the reasons our ancestors fought. Mr. Melvin will only learn this by reading letters and diaries of the soldiers or doing as I did, talk to a grandson of my ancestor who is still alive.
To be an “objective” scholar I would suggest he read all the sources and leave the memorials alone, otherwise it is my opinion he is wasting his money on a book-learned education!
David Roberts
Bristol, Tenn.
