The purpose and position of the South Carolina Division Sons of Confederate Veterans for the Sesquicentennial of the War for Southern Independence.
1) To honor the courage and devotion of the unnumbered thousands of men and women who fought so valiantly and endured so bravely during the War for Southern Independence.
2) To stimulate interest in this period and to encourage further study of the War for Southern Independence, in the belief that honest research will heal old wounds, giving us better understanding of the causes that led to conflict.
3) To educate the public concerning the campaigns, the shrines, the personalities and the human story of the War in South Carolina in the faith that knowledge of the truth will lead to understanding and not resentment.
4) To preserve the monuments, the graves, the relics and the ruins of the wartime past to remind this and future generations of their link with history.
5) To proclaim South Carolina's role in this historic struggle, emphasizing the following point:
A) South Carolina, first State to secede, has always been at the forefront among states which hold dear their sovereignty and who oppose all-powerful central government.
B) South Carolinians believed they fought for freedom, a feeling expressed by General Robert E. Lee when he declared, "Soldiers, you tread with no unequal step the road by which your fathers marched through sufferings, privation and blood to independence".
C) South Carolina, which suffered perhaps more than other states in the aftermath of war, arose from the depths of defeat, following the leadership of General Lee and others within our own state who called for an end of bitterness, the restoration of the country and the re-establishment of peace.
6) To encourage the American people to rededicate themselves to the observance of the highest moral standards and to the service or their country to no less an extent than our fathers dedicated themselves to honorable causes.
7) To inspire all people to follow the guidance of God in the spiritual crises of life, as did some of the greatest heroes of that day.
8) To point out the common heritage and to emphasize the unity of this nation that has developed since the conflict of 1861-1865.
