As performers prepared inside the Gailliard Auditorium Monday, outside the NAACP marched in protest of their production.
According to Dot Scott, President of the Charleston branch of the NAACP, the Monday night performance celebrates men who fought for slavery.
“While it appropriate to commemorate, they are trying to sanitize us to the real reason these state seceded from the union,” she explained.
Dozens agreed with her and marched through the streets of Charleston in protest to the dinner and production, sponsored by the Confederate Heritage Trust.
The play, according to organizers, is taken from the minutes from the secession convention 150 years ago.
Mark Simpson, a member of the Sons of the Confederacy, said he hoped the audience would come away from the performance educated.
“I think you will find, as we have that the states seceded for more than just slavery,” he explained. “We encourage you to study it.”
Mike Givens, also with the Sons of the Confederacy, said he hoped protesters would join him in celebrating the end of an era.
“If there is one thing we can celebrate, we can celebrate the demise of that dark part of our history. There is slavery in other parts of the world. That should be concentrated on,” he said.
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