Kevin, you are fighting a losing battle with a lot of people trying to get them to accept the fact that slavery played a big part in sucession. I am a die hard Southerner but I accept the fact that the first 6 states to secede did so partly for that reason. If I am not mistaken, South Carolina at first wanted no part in a confederation of Southern states; they wanted to go on their own. In January 1861, MS, FL, AL, GA and LA seceded. Then the South was invaded and the rest seceded when it became necessary to defend their homes against the invading army.

BTW, Mississippi didn't even ratify the 13th Amendment until 1995.