Nelson W. Winbush

Nelson Winbush (child) with Confederate Veteran grandfather

Nelson W. Winbush (b. 1929- ), is an educator, a retired assistant principal who is notable as an African American member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. (SCV).^[1][2] He is a member of the SCV's Jacob Summerlin Camp #1516 (Kissimmee, Florida).

Early life and education

Winbush was born in Ripley, Tennessee, where he grew up in a house built by his grandfather Louis Napoleon Nelson in 1908. His grandfather lived until 1934 and told vivid stories about his service during the Civil War. As a teenager he had accompanied his master's sons, for he grew up in slavery on the James Oldham plantation. He became part of Co. M, 7th Tennessee Cavalry of the Confederate Army, carrying a rifle, and serving as chaplain to both blacks and whites because he had memorized the King James Bible by heart. He began his military service as a cook, then a rifleman, and finally a chaplain. Being descended from this Confederate veteran enabled Winbush to qualify for membership in the Sons of Confederate Veterans.^[1]

Winbush earned an undergraduate degree in science and a master's degree in physical education. His two siblings also went to college; and his mother and grandmother were teachers.

Marriage and children

Winbush married. One of his sons is a Naval Academy graduate and professional at IBM.^[1] His wife died before 2007.

Career

Winbush became a teacher and later an assistant principal, having a career in education. In 1955 he moved to Florida, which retained segregated schools for years past the US Supreme Court ruling that declared them unconstitutional.

Opinions on the South

Winbush has many views that were once popular in the South. In 1991 after the NAACP began a campaign against the Confederate flag being celebrated on public buildings, Winbush decided to get involved and joined the Sons of Confederate Veterans. He was retiring from teaching and thought he could speak out, because he considers the Confederate flag part of Southern heritage. He believes the South seceded from the Union because the federal government taxed it disproportionately, and that the war was fought over states' rights, not slavery. "He denies that President Lincoln freed the slaves, explaining that the Emancipation Proclamation affected only the Confederate states, which were no longer under his authority."^[1]

Winbush has traveled widely to SCV posts and other organizations to speak about his views and heritage.^[3] During one of these speeches, when referring to his Confederate heritage, Winbush sang part of a song, "....Black is nothing other than a darker shade of rebel gray."^[1]

In 1998 Winbush participated in the production of a video on Black Southern Heritage by Dr. Edward Smith of American University, who is also an African-American SCV member; it discusses in part his grandfather's Confederate military service and qualification for a Confederate pension after the war.^{[2][4][dead link]}

His views on these topics have drawn criticism from organizations such as the NAACP.^[1]

See also

• Black Confederate Soldiers

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Stephanie Garry, "In defense of his Confederate pride", St. Petersburg Times, 7 October 2007
2. ^ ^{a b} "Black History Month: Black Confederate Heritage", Sons of Confederate Veterans, 2004, accessed 22 March 2011
3. ^ Kollatz, Harry, Jr. "Sons of the Great Rebellion", The Metropolitan Monthly, August 1996, p. 62.
4. ^ "Beating Up on the Confederacy", Issues & Views

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