ATLANTA — Georgia has long given its state employees a holiday honoring the birthday of Robert E. Lee, the iconic Confederate general. Though the Civil War leader’s birthday falls on Jan. 19, the state generally postpones its commemoration until the day after Thanksgiving to give state workers a day off.
But Republican Gov. Nathan Deal quietly changed that practice for next year. Instead, Lee’s birthday and another controversial holiday — Confederate Memorial Day — have been replaced with the more neutral term “state holiday.”
The shift came as Georgia’s embrace of Confederate symbols faced increased scrutiny in the wake of the massacre of nine black worshippers at a Charleston, S.C., church by a suspected white supremacist.
State-issued license plates featuring the Rebel emblem have been changed, though only slightly. Statues and paintings of Confederate leaders in the statehouse are facing fresh criticism. And the leaders of Stone Mountain have agreed to build a memorial for black soldiers on top of the giant paean to the Confederate war dead.
Deal explained his decision to rename the holidays in a recent interview:
“It’s hopefully a good faith effort on the part of state government to lower the degree of debate and discussion, and to show that we are a state that has come a very long way. We are tolerant of a lot of things. But we will also protect our heritage. But this was not one of those areas where I thought it was necessary to keep those labels associated with the holiday.”
That hasn’t quieted the criticism from both sides of the debate.
A flood of emails to the governor’s office brought responses ranging from disappointment to charges of cowardice. The Sons of Confederate Veterans labeled it “an act of dishonor.”
And state Sen. Vincent Fort, an Atlanta Democrat, called Deal’s decision an “inartful dodge” and vowed to press on with legislation to remove Confederate Memorial Day from the list of sanctioned holidays.