Stone Mountain- Both Urban and Historic

Stone Mountain, Georgia is a southern city that I believe represents southern identity. The city is urbanized, yet still holds history. As James has mentioned, the South is being increasingly industrialized. Stone Mountain is no exception. Perhaps one of the most striking examples of industrialization in Stone Mountain is the area surrounding the Wal-Mart Supercenter. Right across from Wal-Mart is a cemetery. Stone Mountain used to be a smaller, less urban town and the cemetery reminds us of this. The cemetery seems out of place amidst the busy roads and shopping center, but the area surrounding the old cemetery had changed and been urbanized.

Despite the urbanization of the city, however, the city still holds lots of history. The city is actually named after “the largest exposed granite dome in North America” called Stone Mountain. The mountain contains carvings of the heroes of the Confederate army, President Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Thomas Stonewall Jackson. If you climb the mountain and view the area from the top, you can see Atlanta, the North Georgia Mountains, the Blue ridge mountains, and even an old plantation. If you visit the Stone Mountain village surrounding the mountain, you can visit over 50 specialty shops. You can even take a class called Southern 101 that teaches you how to be southern and talk southern. Stone Mountain is a confederate memorial and a place where a family can have fun. The city Stone Mountain has the changing, more industrialized identity of the South along with the older, historical identity of the South.

This youtube video below describes in more details about Stone Mountain and other tourist attractions such as the Coca Cola Factory.

Cities of the South

Over time the South has made great strides in transforming itself from a rural farm land to an urban industrialized region. This move to becoming industrialized has led to cities of the South becoming more important to the southern identity. For the blog response to this post I would like you to pick a city of the South that you believe is most important in establishing the southern identity.

The city I see as the most important to the establishment of the southern identity is Atlanta, Georgia. Atlanta is important to the south in several different aspects. It boasts being the “world’s busiest passenger airport” according to a website depicting most cities of the South. This helps promote Atlanta being the cultural center of the South. The gigantic aquarium, world of coke, CNN center, and the sport stadiums are just a few of the places that make Atlanta a popular tourist attraction. Music is another component that makes Atlanta a cultural center of the South. Jermaine Dupri and Ludacris thought Atlanta was important enough to compose a song about, as shown in this video.

Not only is Atlanta a cultural center, it also is a center for business. The Coca-Cola business is considerably one of the strongest businesses in the city, but Atlanta contains within itself a healthy balance of major companies and small time businesses. As we all know Atlanta is a center where a well respected education can be found. The Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia State, and several other colleges in the Atlanta region are preparing the brightest students from around the world to become world leaders in a many different areas of study.

The Unknown Facts about the South and Civil Rights

In the 1920s, the KKK used the Star and Stripes flag during their marches, not the Confederate flag.

I agree with Nick that the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement drastically changed the South and the southern beliefs of many people in the South. However, I think it is also interesting to consider some interesting facts examined by southern blogger JD Murrah in his blog post titled “A Southern Primer: Truths, Untruths and Stereotypes” that counteracts some common stereotypes about the South’s stand on civil rights.

The principal port for slave ships was actually in New York City. The second and third were Portland, Maine and Boston. The first anti-slavery groups were also formed in the South. Furthermore, there were more free blacks living in the South at the beginning of the Civil War compared to the North. Surprisingly, “the first black chaplain for an American military unit was for the Confederate Army” (Murrah). It is also interesting to note that the KKK that marched in Washington in 1925, 1928, and 1990 carried the Stars and Stripes flag, not the Confederate flag, and the first state in America to elect a black governor was the southern state Virginia. Lawrence Douglas Wilder was elected to the Virginia senate in 1989 and served from 1990 to 1994.

Although the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement countered the beliefs of many southerners, slavery was not part of the “Southern Identity” for all southerners. I think that these events did impact the South greatly but did not completely change what it means to be a southerner. Southern hospitality, religion, music, and food still play a large part in southern identity.

Rap - Today's Civil Rights Movement

The civil war was the first defining point in American history where people questioned the calling of other human beings property. It was made a point that all human beings no matter skin color should be free. Yet after the civil war the rights of blacks were still below the standard. It wasn’t until the civil rights movement that the question of what rights blacks truly had in the United States was addressed. Such leaders as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X, and others brought the attention of this nation on how blacks were being treated in this country where people are supposed to be free and equal.

Those leaders however are gone, but it is hard to say that their work is finished. So who is leading the civil rights movement in today’s world? One article written by Scott Simon would suggest that the world of Rap/Hip Hop is where the civil rights movement of today can be found. He mentions that this style of music is the first that didn’t have to be changed to fit into a white enterprise. This is in fact the first style that stayed original to its form created by blacks. It is in the fact that the style did not have to integrate but keep its true to its roots is the reason that it is the current form of the civil rights movement. This video actually shows a rap (although it is rather old) that is literally speaking on civil rights. It is in the video that the idea of civil rights being promoted by rap/hip hop can be seen.

Southern History

Hello everyone, sorry it took me so long to post a new topic.

Since my project had several historical ties, I would like the topic to be about Southern history. I think the two most important events in changing Southern identity were the Civil War and the civil rights movement of the mid 1900s. The first quite literally changed the South. It took away a lot of the working men from both sides involved, but in the South these men were often the key members of their families. They provided for and protected them. When they died, all of a sudden the South had a radically different population, and had to adjust accordingly.

The civil rights movement is also an obvious one. The previous injustice was corrected, but in a way that shattered what Southern identity meant for many people. The government quite literally told them that they had to change a belief that had existed for quite some time. Not just change, but to stop believing it entirely. It isn't hard to see the literal ways in which it changed Southern identity, but it did other things as well. There were certain situations where the National Guard was deployed. I can imagine that to the tradition-oriented Southerners, this must have seemed like the Civil War all over again, with the "Northern aggressors" once again affirming what they wanted upon the peaceful South.

So what do you think? Either about these events, or others.

Stereotype - The SLOW South

Have you ever compared driving in the South to driving in the North?

I always remembered my mother telling me how crazy Northerners drive and they are always in a rush to get to their destination, while us Southerners tend to me more friendly drivers and in less of a rush. This article is an article on Southern stereotypes and talks about many peoples personal experiences with the Southern stereotypes, and this woman said -

"One stereotype that kept resonating from friends was how slow it is in the South. I have to say since we moved here, things are a little bit slower, but I have found people take the time to speak, make eye contact and share a smile, which on a checkout line may make things slower but I genuinely appreciate it."

Personally I agree with what she says, that people in the South tend to be slower, but don't get me wrong, this does not mean that people in the South are dumber. I appreciate the more friendly laid back personality that Southerners can have, and the stereotype we get for it. I would much rather be known as friendly, than to be known as some of the stereotypes that Southerners can give Northerners. Another quote from the article refers to the driving habits of Southerners.

"Probably the biggest stereotype we heard before we moved here was that the South was typically slow.' However, anyone who's been out on interstates 77, 85 and/or 485 before or after rush hour knows that it's anything but slow! They don't call this place the home of NASCAR for nothing!"

This here is proof that there is a stereotype of the South being slow, and that this person, who came from Long Island N.Y., came to the South with a different driving style than what we represent, as his is probably a bit more hectic. While some may think that this stereotype of Southerners being friendly, or slow, is bad, I appreciate it for what it's worth.

Y'all

There are quite a few stereotypes associated with the South. The article in the newspaper, The Cornell Daily Sun, speaks out about southern stereotypes. This article starts out mentioning getting a Budweiser, Bible, and confederate flag when entering South Carolina. The author, Carl Menzel, first covers the stereotype of the South being extremely religious. He mentions that the religious aspect of the South has actually changed how politicians present their platforms. Republicans for example includes God in their literature. The next stereotype covered is respect. How the idea of the southern gentlemen is actually a treasure in this world where “the man who stops to open the door only falls further behind in the line of admittance.” One of the other stereotypes mentioned is the lifestyle of the southern man. The south has a laid back attitude compared to the northern fast-pace race for each dollar.

While the article actually includes the word “y’all” it does not really cover the accent associated with the South. I believe that the southern accent is the best known stereotype associated with the South. I found a youtube video that covers just how diverse the subject is. There are many different accents spread around the South. These accents all have very unique and diverse histories.