Yesterday, Virginia celebrated Lee-Jackson Day. Yes, that's right - it was an official holiday in the Commonwealth. And by Lee-Jackson, of course the former capital of the Confederacy is referring to Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. The holiday is observed in celebration of the birthdays of these Confederate leaders and has taken place for more than a century.
Courts were closed and many state employees enjoy a four day weekend as Lee-Jackson Day was held on Friday and the federal Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. memorial holiday will be observed on Monday.
Ironically, Lee-Jackson Day was celebrated as LEE-JACKSON-KING DAY until 2000 when legislators separated the two [perhaps for obvious or not so obvious reasons.]
Is this surprising? Shocking, even to Virginians? Not really - especially being that a prestigious university in the Commonwealth refused to even celebrate the MLK holiday until 2005. You know, decades after it was endorsed by the federal government.
See more about the celebration of Lee-Jackson Day here.
