Keep reading for all the pros and cons of removing Confederate statues. GAZETTE: What do you say to those who argue that the removal of such statues in prominent public settings dishonors the memory of those who died fighting for the Confederacy? Dreamers and DACA supporters rally outside of the U.S. Supreme Court. Following the white nationalist rally in Virginia on August 12, 2017, it was back in the news. Those who argue against keeping political statues in public spaces typically make the following points: 1. An 1884 Confederate monument to General Robert E. Lee is removed from Lee Circle in New Orleans, Louisiana, on May 19, 2017. The shooter was said to have glorified the Confederate South, posing in Facebook photos with the Battle Flag of the Northern Virginia Army (also known now as the Confederate flag, though it never represented the Confederate States) and touring historical Confederate locations before the shooting. It is unfortunate that they are considered public art works rather than memorializing them. I dont think theres any value there. However, they have also been the centre of much heated debates surrounding their significance. Those who disagree with the beliefs upheld by the statues should work to understand the history these monuments represent, rather than trying to simply remove them and the history from sight. They put up monuments to T.J. because of the Declaration of Independence, which every group has used to make their place in American society. Moving such monuments to museums or other places where they can be contextualized and interpreted is a goal of the National Trust. The Confederates lost the war, the rebellion. They represent the establishments value system at any given time, regardless of the circumstances. UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: When do we want it? For example, The cost to remove all the monuments and statues in New Orleans could cost $600,000. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Monuments of Hope, Memorials to a Poisoned Past, britannica.com, May 25, 2018, 23. During the French Revolution, for example, mobs tore down statues in Catholic Churches. This article was published on January 20, 2022, at Britannicas ProCon.org, a nonpartisan issue-information source. In several cities, these tributes have been vandalized or torn down by protestors or removed by public officials. According to theSouthern Poverty Law Center(SPLC), 59 Confederate statues and nine markers or plaques were removed from public land in 19 US states between June 17, 2015 and July 6, 2020. Take away these men who seem to be inferior to Roosevelt, but leave him. They are a reminder of our countrys dark and oppressive history. PRO ProCon.org. Defend the existence of confederate statues as ways of honoring the past with the United Daughters of the Confederacy, an organization devoted to the memory of Confederate soldiers. New Orleans a city of many nations America's largest slave market History protests Confederate Monuments and Other Disputed Memorials Have Come Down in Cities Across America. A 2018 investigation published in the Smithsonian Magazine found that over the prior ten years at least $40 million in taxpayer dollars were allocated for Confederate statues, other monuments, and heritage organizations. The Rights and Wrongs of Taking Down Monuments - Reason.com The argument is that these statues glorify individuals who have harmed marginalized groups, and that they should be removed from public spaces. Historian puts the push to remove Confederate statues in context The fact that a particular vice prevailed in a persons place and time becomes an excuse for stripping recognition from people whose lives contradict the propaganda of those in power. First, virtually everyone acts in ways consistent with contemporaneous social normsnorms of which later generations may disapprove. Charisse L'Pree, Racial and Gender Exclusion from Media Affects Novel Group Identity; An Experimental Investigation of Symbolic Annihilation, sites.google.com/site/charisselpree2 (accessed July 8, 2020), 29. The idea is, this is a statue of a civil leader, and they are someone whose virtue or deeds were meant to emulate as citizens. Chvez was once an island with no borders and no land. For many years people have been arguing whether certain controversial monuments, such as statues, should be destroyed or removed. [14] [17]. These battles have a strong historical context, as they were influenced by a very Venezuelan tradition: Bolivarian political historicism. Scottie Andrew and Anna Sturla, A Statue of Frederick Douglass Was Toppled over the Fourth of July Weekend, the Anniversary of His Famous Speech, cnn.com, July 6, 2020, 10. The Confederate symbols and associated values that Americans hold in high regard are paid for by them. [52], Next to the Peace Monument in Atlanta, Georgia, a plaque reads, This monument should no longer stand as a memorial to white brotherhood; rather, it should be seen as an artifact representing a shared history in which millions of Americans were denied civil and human rights. [24], Sheffield Hale, JD, President and Chief Executive of the Atlanta History Center, stated of the plaque, I do think it gives [people] a starting point, which is sorely needed right now, in our society, as a way to deal with contentious issues. These products have become necessities of the world, and a blow at slavery is a blow at commerce and civilization There was no choice left us but submission to the mandates of abolition, or a dissolution of the Union, whose principles had been subverted to work out our ruin. [15] [16], However, after the Confederate States lost the Civil War, the South revised history. The police killing of George Floyd sparked widespread protests and reignited efforts across the U.S. to remove Confederate and other statues viewed as symbols of slavery and racism. Should Statues Be Removed and Destroyed? | Guest Contributor - Politics Red Mridas Avenida de los Insignes, the Paseo de los Insignes, and the Coln derribado de Caracas were all parts of the Ch Guevaras visit to the United States. Venezuela has been transformed into a nation of tumba-estatuas (or busts), which are statues that serve as a political pedagogy for understanding the history of the past that can be adapted by modernism. With most American figures, certainly most presidents, you will find many reasons to actually criticize them and criticize their record, even our heroes. In particular, a lot of our civic buildings our courthouses, our state capitals, even our public squares and parks are in the neoclassical style. No logr derribarla. We do not erect monuments to people who performed extraordinary feats that were unquestionably evil, even if their characters included some virtuous traits. [31], In Louisville, a statue of Confederate soldier John Breckinridge Castleman was removed. We should let them stand and use them to remind ourselves of what we are and are not, the cost our forebears paid for our freedom and to educate our children. [38], During the protests following the death of George Floyd in the summer of 2020, many Confederate statues were damaged or toppled, as were statues of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Ulysses S. Grant. Confederate Monuments: What Should Replace Them? | Time Washington owned over 300, Jefferson over 600, and Grant worked on his wifes family plantation and inherited one slave upon his father-in-laws death. Here are the proper bibliographic citations for this page according to four style manuals (in alphabetical order): [Editor's Note: The APA citation style requires double spacing within entries. Your Arguments Against Removing The Statues Are Bad Henry Louis Gates, Jr., PhD, Director of the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard University, notes that enduringly charged symbols of the former Confederacy [add] to our fears that, instead of embracing the promise of democracy in a diverse society, some want to return us to a far more restrictive time, when freedom was circumscribed by race. [22], We cant get to learning from our history if we keep accepting that racism should be celebrated in American history, according to Khalil Gibran Muhammad, PhD, Professor of History, Race and Public Policy at Harvard University [1]. In the United States, Confederate generals were overthrown or voted out. Historic Statue Removal - Pros & Cons - ProCon.org In the event that these statues are removed, the country would lose a valuable educational tool about the effects of the Civil War. They are not an accurate representation of our countrys diverse population. Do we protect Confederate graves and battlefields? A global anti-gender movement is coming for our democracy. He was also an abolitionist, though a hypocritical and pragmatic one who understood the country would not give up slavery so easily. Since Black Lives Matter protests began in response to Columbuss legacy, a number of statues of him have been removed. There are at least two reasons for not permitting contemporaneous vices to disqualify historical figures from favorable commemoration. Confederate monuments, in particular, hold religious, cultural, economic, and political values. Chicago, Illinois 60654 USA, Natalie Leppard There is one major distraction when it comes to removing statues that detracts from the larger issue at hand: the notion that removing a statue is an act of historical cleansing. 746 Words3 Pages. emma.greguska@asu.edu. ASU Associate Professor of English Kathleen Lamp, a historian who specializes in the rhetoric of public art, including memorials and monuments, said such controversy is as old as time. There are statues being targeted of people like Ulysses S. Grant, of people like President George Washington, who were not involved in the Confederacy. Last week, protesters swarmed the statue, trying to topple it with two small ropes (seemingly impossible to anyone who has seen the massive monument up close). The bus will arrive in Che Guevaras honor. Gordon-Reed is a professor of history and the Charles Warren Professor of American Legal History at Harvard Law School. Sophia A. Nelson claims in her book that Washingtons Lee University didnt hate black students because it had statues of Robert E. Lee and George Washington. They were on the wrong side of history. First, removing all these statues and monuments cost a lot of money and take a long time. They did, though, own slaves. We shouldn't shy from the fact that many of these men were slave owners, but we should also be able to judge each case individually. One claim for not removing certain statues of people who have committed egregious acts is that we should not treat people of another time as if they were second-rate citizens. Theyre models of civic behavior that we should all strive to. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Statues play a critical role in society. Yet, this is not the first time . The statues do not cause racism and could be used to fight racism if put into historical context. The interpretations have been contradictory, and the results are presented in the form of commentaries. I think what you see with the Lee monument and this new time capsule is a good example of how we can handle that. So these statues, I think, need to be contextualized historically. I think in general in this country, statues have held up a very white, male virtue. Following the murder of George Floyd, I think we started to see a broader recognition of how statues in civic spaces can exclude certain people. I think it dishonors them to celebrate the men who killed them and tried to kill off the American nation. The campaign to remove controversial monuments and memorials has attracted a lot of criticism - charges that we are "erasing" history or imposing our own values and perspectives on people . Colleen Walsh, Must We Allow Symbols of Racism on Public Land?, harvard.edu, June 19, 2020, 44. 2. All rights reserved. It was an event that forced segregationists to come down rather than a single persons actions. They are also a reminder of the sacrifices made by those who fought for the Confederacy and a symbol of Southern heritage. Admittedly, the traditional consensus is not an infallible guide to deciding whom to commemorate. What are your thoughts on a separate museum for such statues? SINHA: I think then it becomes a purely destructive exercise, a way you are simply destroying all monuments and all statues. We see this in the National Statuary Hall Collection in the U.S. Capitol. Slavery is represented in statues by people who distort history and commemorate individuals who perpetuated it. Venezuelas mezcla is characterized by a lack of eclecticism, as well as a widespread, general sense of izquierda. Opponents said, well, if you're going to take down Jefferson Davis, the next day you're going to take down George Washington. Theres one school of thought that says communities should be the ones to decide. After reading the pros and cons on this topic, has your thinking changed? The results of these revoluciones can be viewed in the following format: Un momento climtico en el derribamiento de alguna ser industrialization de Marx. Natalie Huet, Sir Geoff Palmer, Dont Take down Statues - Take down Racism, euronews.com, June 11, 2020, 54. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Several years have passed since the debate over the removal of Confederate statues began. The reason for that was a movement called City Beautiful. On the other hand, others argue that they are offensive and should be removed. On the one hand, some argue that they are historical landmarks and should be preserved. Southern Poverty Law Center, Whose Heritage? I think the difference that George Floyd's murder has made and that's been a bit heartening for me is that ordinary American citizens have finally realized what these statues symbolize and how they have been a standing affront for African Americans and their quest for equal citizenship in this country because Black Americans have always been against it. There was the thought that these immigrants needed to be turned into productive workers, and that concern is where a lot of our public spaces come from. She won the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award for her explosive 2008 work, The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family.. [27] [28] Statues celebrating the diversity of the country could help remedy symbolic annihilation of black Americans, women, and other groups. Consider appealing to the American Alliance of Museums for the use of the statues removed from public display. Juan De Anda, Why Representation Matters Now, mediapost.com, April 21, 2020, 28. Should Confederate Monuments Be Removed. Go toProCon.orgto learn more. His disreputable actions reflected attitudes and practices common to his society. What do you think? They should be removed from public spaces because they serve as a reminder of the negative effects of racism and bigotry, as well as a symbol of how far we have come since the colonial era. And the vast majority of these statues were erected during the height of the Jim Crow movement, as historian Kevin M. Kruse has shown. I think on these two, Washington and Jefferson, in particular, you take the bitter with sweet. Kehinde Wiley, Instagram.com, June 4, 2020, 34. Statues Commemorating Slave Traders Should Be Removed But Not Disposed Some were unlawfully torn. The removal in recent years of several monuments depicting Confederate leaders and other controversial historical figures by both politicians and unsanctioned activists have generated debate over whether their removal is justified.