Reflecting on the U.S. Civil War and the choices we make today.
Last fall, during a visit to Nashville, I made a side trip to the site of the 1864 Battle of Franklin. It was a disaster for the Confederate Army, which lost 1,750 soldiers in the battle. Many of them died in the nearby Carnton plantation, which served as a temporary field hospital, and were buried on the grounds. Our tour guide was amazing; she not only brought the military history to life, but also evoked the cultural assumptions, regional biases, and emotional predispositions of the primary players.
To this day, I am troubled by the realization that people very much like me chose to fight a war to protect a way of life that was only possible because of the free labor of enslaved people. And I am keenly aware that other people chose to end enslavement, which they saw as legal but morally wrong, knowing that their own business (and their family) would suffer the consequences of that decision. It was a crisis of conscience. But how many of us would have made the choice that seems obvious today?
I believe in capitalism. I believe in its power to bring prosperity to many, many people. I believe in the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I also believe in democracy, civil rights, and due process. So if I were forced to make a choice between risking the welfare of thousands of people, including my family, or defending the values I’ve lived by my entire life, what would I do?
It’s a timely question that many leaders are being forced to make today. It was easy for me, a blessed person living in San Francisco, to walk through Carnton and feel self-righteous. It’s trickier when we have skin in the game.