In the 1860's, 11 southern states withdrew from the United States and formed the Confederacy. They seceded in response to the growing movement for the nationwide abolition of slavery. Yet barely a year after the Civil War ended, southern sources began claiming the conflict was about state's rights. How did this revisionist history come about? Karen L. Cox examines the cultural myth of the Lost Cause. [Directed by Anton Bogaty, narrated by Christina Greer, music by Stephen LaRosa].

Karen L. Cox: Debunking the myth of the Lost Cause: A lie embedded in American history

Debunking the myth of the Lost Cause: A lie embedded in American history

The Lost Cause myth, painting the Civil War as a noble stand for states' rights, obscures its true root: the defense of slavery.

The United Daughters of the Confederacy's efforts in erecting monuments and altering textbooks forged a revisionist history.

Frederick Douglass warned that forgetting the Civil War's true cause endangers the rights and recognition of Black Americans.