secession

Excerpt: The March to Battle at Fort Sumter

by Bruce Chadwick

The words of Jefferson Davis, his inner circle, and his critics trace the path to war in an exerpt from a new book telling the story of the conflict through the firsthand observations of the participants.

Marjorie Taylor Greene's "National Divorce" Won't be Amicable

by Thomas Lecaque and Joshua Call

The greatest danger of the Congresswoman's call for red and blue states to disaffiliate is that it will encourage followers to use political and extralegal means to move their communities and states closer to the fantasy of unity and homogeneity she referenced. 

Was the Civil War Inevitable?

by David W. Blight

As a growing number of Americans entertain the idea that dissolving the nation might be better than holding its incompatible parts together, it's worth revisiting the series of decisions that led to the Civil War, and to ask whether the nation has, or will, experience the equivalent of the Dred Scott decision. 

California's Ongoing Secession Movement and its Ties to the History of Slavery

by Kevin Waite

Today, more conservative parts of California agitate to separate from the liberally-governed state. In the 1850s, southern California sought to secede from a state constitution that prohibited slavery and build an empire of forced labor. 

The Secessionist Roots of January 6

by Elizabeth R. Varon

"The story of Southern secession provides illuminating evidence that the Jan. 6 insurgency was, indeed, precedented, rooted in long-standing efforts to preempt, delegitimize and suppress Black voting."

The End of Democracy won't Look Like You Think It Will

by Tom Nichols

The authoritarian right isn't motivated or organized enough to create the kind of dystopia some fear. But federalism means that significant chunks of the Formerly-United States will turn the clock back to the late 1950s. 

Maryland’s State Song, a Nod to the Confederacy, Nears Repeal

"Maryland, My Maryland" was written by a Confederate sympathizer in 1861 and has come under scrutiny in recent years for its characterization of the Union army as a force of tyranny and call for listerners to fight for the Confederacy. 

Why It’s Time to Take Secessionist Talk Seriously

by Richard Kreitner

"The Confederate flags the insurgents carried through the Capitol weren’t about the past, but the future." (note: Subscription required to read source article.)

One Nation, Indivisible: Really? Forever?

Richard Kreitner, author of "Break It Up" joins Burt Cohen's podcast to discuss the history and future of calls to break up the United States.

The Senators Who Were Expelled After Refusing To Accept Lincoln’s Election

by Gillian Brockell

Not since the crisis of secession and the Civil War has the U.S. Senate expelled a member. 

How Secession Became America’s Favorite Idle Threat

With one notable exception, secession has been an idle threat in American political discourse. Richard Kreitner's book on secession movements anchors columnist Jack Shafer's analysis.

Are Republicans Serious about a Secession Movement?

Richard Kreitner, author of "Break It Up," argues that calls for secession have been a regular feature of American political life, though they usually amount to criticism instead of action. 

Mississippi Republican Calls for His State to ‘Succeed from the Union’ after Biden Victory

"Even before the race was called, Mississippi’s five Republicans in Congress released a joint statement that warned, without evidence, about the existence of “voting irregularities” across the country."

You’re Tearing Me Apart: On William L. Barney’s “Rebels in the Making: The Secession Crisis and the Birth of the Confederacy”

A new book on secession examines the politics of all 15 slave states and power of a reactionary slaveholding elite to force secession. 

Is America a Myth?

Writer Robin Wright looks to historians Richard Kreitner and Colin Woodard to explain that the idea of a unified American nation has not been the historical norm. 

Americans Have Feared Another Civil War Since the End of the Last One

by Richard Kreitner

The ink was hardly dry on Lee's surrender at Appomattox before Andrew Johnson's conciliation toward the former Confederacy clashed with the unfulfilled goals of freed slaves and radical Republicans to threaten further violence. These fault lines have been hidden but never healed in the restored American union.

Learning from Lincoln: Meeting Crisis with Action

by William L. Barney

The United States is at a crossroads. The path chosen will determine whether contemporary America resumes its role as a beacon of hope and progress to the rest of the world or joins the Confederate slaveholders of the past among history’s losers. 

Newest Born of Nations: European Nationalism and the Confederate States of America

by Ann Tucker

White southerners looked to contemporary European nationalist movements and compared the South to aspiring nations abroad. This allowed them to conceive of the South as a potential nation, distinct from the North and separate from the United States, and to justify secession and the creation of the Confederacy.

John C. Calhoun Statue Taken Down from its Perch above Charleston’s Marion Square

The city's removal of John C. Calhoun's statue was much more difficult than anticipated. May we assume the same of his legacy? 

Why one Historian Changed his Mind about the Calhoun Monument

by Robert MacDonald

It's difficult for statues to serve as sources of public knowledge about history.