Re: Introducing VDARE’s 1620 Society
From: An Anonymous Virginian [Email him]
I love VDare. I am an immigration patriot and a race realist. I love the idea of the 1620 Society, but I was so disheartened when I saw its name. As a native Virginian, I have been pointing out for years to anyone who will listen that the historic American nation did not begin in 1620 at Plymouth but in 1607 at Jamestown, Virginia. The Berkeley Castle is in a state with Virginia in its name!!
It’s so demoralizing as a Virginian to see our true founding on this continent overlooked in favor of those religious zealot pilgrims who are the forebears of today's Massachusetts liberals. Real America began in 1607. Hell, Virginia had the first representative legislature in North America in 1619 (the real reason that that date is important, contrary to the NYT's eponymous project) before the Pilgrim's even arrived at Plymouth. I wish you had named it the 1607 or the Jamestown Society instead of 1620.
Lydia Brimelow replies:
Thank you so much for reaching out. I'm sure you won't be surprised to hear that you're not the first to make this point. One of my best advisors even warned me about this complaint before we went live with the 1620 Society, and in some ways, as a Southerner myself, I agree with you: it is can be irritating how New England totally dominates our nation's birth story.
However, with the 1619 Project pressing in on the one hand and COVID cancelations of all Mayflower Compact celebrations on the other, it seemed right and timely to commemorate the event. The government that developed from the Pilgrim’s Mayflower Compact was the political expression of a particular people, flowing naturally from a thousand years of English culture. And it grew and influenced the development of the United States in ways that should not be understated.
We cannot stand by while any of our heritage is defamed, denounced, or forcibly forgotten.
Besides, as VDARE (named after Virginia Dare of the Lost Colony, mind you) grows there is lots of room for more commemorations. The Jamestown Circle has a real ring to it!
Earlier on Jamestown:
