Clearly, nobody should ever do anything in the US Southeast, ever. Because, you know, slavery.
Don’t go to Atlanta Braves games, because Atlanta was built on slavery. Well, it burned and was rebuilt after slavery, but … well, slavery.
Don’t eat in a New Orleans restaurant. No doubt slaves were not permitted to eat there, so you’d be supporting slavery.
Oh wait, a large part of the US economy was built on slavery. So, don’t live in or buy anything made in the US.
There. Now you’re good.
I’m still mad at Georgia for refusing to vote to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, and have managed not to spend any tourist money there, at least in some part for that reason.
I applaud you for it. I remember being deeply embarrassed to live in a country where we can’t make it constitutional that women and men are equal before the law.
That said, if it had been passed, I’m sure there would have been a ton of ridiculous lawsuits and a real circus. But I believe that it’s a price that’s worth paying.
Georgia wasn’t alone in failing to ratify. Only 2/3 of states need to ratify, IIRC. So which are the other states to boycott for ERA?
Boy oh boy would you get into trouble for saying that if you were white.
The thing is, I can see DiFranco being called a racist for not holding her event at that site. If she had opted for a different venue at the outset, she might be accused of “sweeping the history of slavery under the rug”.
EDIT: gonna rethink this one.
Are you serious?
This is a ridiculous, insulting straw man. People objected to holding an event at a cite that’s been turned into a historical museum about how “nicely” slaves were treated.
Like, this whole “let’s try to portray black women as totally irrational” is really kind of disgusting. Can you cite anyone who’s been attacked for holding a feminist retreat at someplace that wasn’t a plantation, or do you just enjoy making shit up?
Sign of a sound mind! 
Been there done that too, though I won’t admit to a sound mind. More than once I’ve been posting something here that I was very sure about, only to realize during the post that my arguments were crumbling as I typed them. It’s a humbling experience, but one that’s usually overdue, at least for me!
My first wedding was held in Northern Virginia, and I can tell you that finding an event site with any historical background means accepting that slaves were once kept there. For instance, I took a wedding tour of the Carlyle House with three brides, their mothers, and me. The guide showed us the guest restrooms on the lower level past the reconstructed slave quarters, which included mannequins of the slaves themselves. One of the mothers asked if the slaves could be stored away somewhere during the reception, and the guide was horrified.
I read this piece about the controversy a couple of weeks ago, and I thought the complaints made sense. I think the key is the last part:
For whatever it’s a worth, a good friend of mine got married this summer at a former plantation, and when I realized what it was, it made me uncomfortable. I wouldn’t do that.
Total nonsense.
Perhaps apropo nothing, I remember a TV ad for this college that started with a wagonload of slaves being brought through the gates while being told to set their minds to working, then shifted to a modern bus of black students coming in the same way, with the words repeated.
Also, a cringeworthy aspect of living in the South is its tourism for idiots (mostly Northern wives dragging their husbands through nice old houses). The docents are attractive young women in Scarlet O’Hara drag, guaranteed to utter the phrase “The late unpleasantries” at least once. If you confront these women on the glaring oversight presented, you’ll see the other historical Southern divide besides Black vs White: if she’s a daughter of the working class she’ll tell you to kiss her ass. If from the genteel class she’ll make a skilled attempt at shaming you for insulting a pretty girl who just wants to marry the richest boy possible.
Some of the best art and ideas for art can come from an unhappy period. Its not racist to choose a racist location , it’s racist to think that your race is morally superior to others.
Of course they can. That doesn’t have much to do with where a retreat gets hosted, though.