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So, what if the South had won?

Despite the relatively tame fare that's playing in the movies now (for the half-dozen of us who still bother to go) there's no lack of provocative films coming soon to a theater near you.

For instance, the comic book adaptation "V for Vendetta" features a masked terrorist as its protagonist.

The film, set in a Britain overtaken by an oppressive government, is produced by the Wachowski Brothers of "The Matrix" fame.

Then there's "The Da Vinci Code," starring Tom Hanks and directed by Ron Howard, which already has upset the Catholic Church with its Jesus-married-Mary-Magdalene backstory (as if that's not enough, author Dan Brown has been taken to court for allegedly stealing his ideas from another book).

But the faux documentary "Confederate States of America" may be more provocative than both.

The critically acclaimed film speculates what would might have happened if the South had won the Civil War.

Presented much in the manner of a Ken Burns production, here's the film's premise:

British and French forces help the Confederacy defeat the North at Gettysburg and turn the tide of the war.

President Lincoln attempts to flee across the border to Canada but is captured in blackface.

President Jefferson Davis spreads slavery to the North by offering a tax rebate to slaveholders as an incentive.

During World War II, the CSA chooses not to go to war with the Third Reich but takes out Japan on Dec. 7, 1941, with a pre-emptive attack.

Not long after his election, John F. Kennedy is assassinated soon after being elected, because he appears intent on emancipating the slaves and giving women the the vote.

And, well, you get the idea.

Wonder what kind of reception "CSA" will get when it arrives in Greensboro. If it gets here at all.


Comments (13)

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Astro Boy said:

That brings back to mind the old Firesign theater record "Everything You Know is Wrong." One of the background statements is something like "The gentlemanly agricultural south has defeated the industrial northern agressors."

Those guys were visionaries!

John Appel said:

Fried chicken would be de rigueur in all New York restaurants.

Allen Johnson said:

I get a kick out of these alternate histories. They can provide intriguing food for thought (including fried chicken and collard greens).

herb said:

Why didn't you point to Spike's Web site?

David Boyd said:

If the South had won at Gettysburg, they might have ended the war, but they wouldn't have have taken over the North (even with the British and French) so I don't think there's much of a chance slavery would have spread anywhere. Also, since slavery ended in much of the rest of the world without a war prior to 1960, why do they think it would have lasted that long here? And why would women getting the vote be delayed?

I realize this is just fantasy, but it would be more fun if it was realistic.

Allen Johnson said:

Good questions, David. But remember, the South depended largely on slavery for its economy.

David Boyd said:

No doubt, Allen. Economics drove everything with regards to slavery in the South. States' rights and all the rest were after the fact justifications.

That being said, the North abandoned slavery as their economy diversified and moral arguments began to trump financial ones. I wonder seriously how many more years of pressure it would have taken to end the practice? And if slavery had ended peacefully, what would that mean for the South today? Maybe nothing, I don't know. As bad as Reconstruction was, on so many levels for so many people, maybe it just speeded up a process that would have been just as bad if it had been drawn out.

Allen Johnson said:

Good observations, David.
It'll be interesting to see how the movie builds its case for its alternate history.
I'm guessing some story lines were exaggerated to make a point.
But like the movie, I can only speculate at this stage.
I'm guessing we probably won't see it until it hits the DVD shelves.

Freddy Niché said:

Hmm...sounds like satire to me. I, too, remember Harry Shearer's days before "The Simpsons" and "A Mighty Wind", when he was part of Firesign.

Since Britain and France had abolished slavery, would they have supported its continued trade for long? Certainly they made money off it. But their own moralists had real suasion.

How would Kennedy ever have been elected? You saw how the South (Guilford County excluded) treated Kerry, another Boston Catholic. Mel Gibson, maybe. No Brahmins allowed.

Lincoln in blackface is a hilarious image, though I hate myself for laughing. And Jeff Davis's descendant's tax rebates have done well to keep the massah's pockets full and the masses backs broken.

Ed Cone said:

DB, you are a bit literal-minded here, no? It's satire and social commentary, not serious alt-history.

The kind of thing you are looking for was written by Winston Churchill, described here:
http://www.sovereignty.org.uk/siteinfo/newsround/iflee.html

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