Confederate Statues Essay

Another issue with the statues are the actual subjects monumentalized. Notable people that are commemorated with having models of themselves publicly displayed are usually figures that the people of America are proud of, like Abraham Lincoln or Harriet Tubman. Confederate statues, however, are the exception; for they are monuments that represent the institutionalization of racism. “Our public spaces should not glorify historical policies of hatred and racism,” argues Kevin Kamenetz, executive and president of the Maryland Association of Counties (Eversley 2017). That single phrase perfectly sums up what people across the country are attempting to convey, and expresses the main issue that many have with these statues. No person who fought for the right to keep humans as property is deserving of modern honor.

Confederate monuments should stay in public because taking them down goes against the Constitution. The First Amendment gives citizens of the United States the freedoms of speech, expression, worship, and other liberties. Creating and keeping up monuments falls under this because it is symbolic speech towards the Confederacy, the South, and their generals (Nelson). The only way speech is

On the other Side of the argument, John Daniel Davidson author of “Why We Should Keep The Confederate Monuments Right Where They Are” and editor in chief of the online publication The Federalist, argues that Confederate statues such as General Jackson and Confederate war heroes should be kept where they are. In making this claim the author asserts that the public knows the history of the United States and should be able to conclude that these monuments don't represent what they would have represented during the Civil War. Rather, in present day American society they represent how the U.S. was able to make a dramatic change and turn away from slavery. Davidson begins his article with asserting, “They say we shouldn’t honor a bunch of racists

Confederate Monuments have been a hot topic of debate through the years of whether they should stay or go. Throughout history the idea of removing the Confederate Monuments has been perceived as the best possible solution citing that they had a sense of evilness and could flare up racial emotions. While a strong point could be made for the removal of Confederate Monuments, the Confederate monuments should stay in public places because they honor timeless virtues, they could be used as figures to reflect upon our nation’s past and they could be used to educate future generations.

Confederate statues depict anti-abolitionists as heroes and very honorable men, therefore they should be removed. These men who are depicted as heroes fought for the institution of slavery. These statues not only glorify anti-abolitionists but they remind people of the strong racism of the time. Many people fight for the removal of these statues for the sole reason that they “serve as constant reminders of institutional racism, segregation and

Attention Grabber: Due to the recent events that took place in Charlottesville, North Carolina, the discussion on whether or not the Confederate monuments and symbolism should be removed has come about. In this speech, I will give you some more information on the benefits and disadvantages to both removing and keeping the statues and flags.

From Trajan’s Column, completed in 113 AD, to the statue of Christopher Columbus in Easton, Pennsylvania, monuments and memorials have been a significant element of celebration and honor throughout history (Source B). Though monuments are typically meant as a symbol of honor, recent controversy over statues dedicated to Confederate leaders and generals has sparked the debate over how to choose subjects to memorialize, and the actual development of these memorials. When considering what or who to honor, one must also consider the subjects impact on history, ensuring that it is positive. In creating memorials and monuments, groups and agencies should examine the historical significance of the events or persons they wish to memorialize, and the

The purpose of many monuments is to honor and protect the legacy of some of America's greatest heroes. Kirk Savage in the book Monument

The removal of Confederate monuments has been a controversial topic over the past few years. Many want to tear them down, others want to keep them up and some want them to be moved to museums. Although controversial, many still do not know why exactly people want these statues to tear down or be kept up. After reading and analyzing both Michele Bogart’s and The Guardian’s view on Confederate statues, I would say that Michele Bogart’s “In Defense of ‘Racist’ Monuments” article was the most persuasive. Right off the bat, Michele Bogart starts off with how the rise of white nationalism is causing officials around the country to remove memorials of Confederate soldiers, military leaders, and symbols of “the Lost Cause”. Bogart clearly states that not all civic statues represent white supremacy or racism, but that they are “the culmination of complex social and artistic engagement at the community level” (Bogart). She further explains how eliminating these statues is not going to help solve the problem of racism in the United States. Her purpose in this essay is to persuade the reader that civic monuments should be kept up as pieces of art, not as “symbols of hate”.

Before engaging in discourse regarding the Confederacy, it is important to understand what, exactly, it was about. The Confederate States of America were formed in 1861 as a way for the deep South to continue owning slaves, due in part to the fact that their agricultural industries depended on slave labor to operate. While they did stand for other things, the origin and primary goal of the Confederacy was to fight against those who wanted to abolish slavery. Because of this, Confederate memorabilia and monuments are fundamentally linked with slavery and racism, and this aspect must be remembered when discussing what to do with regards to Confederate monuments.

First, removing all these statues and monuments cost a lot of money and take a long time. For example, The cost to remove all the monuments and statues in New Orleans could cost $600,000. Thats a lot of money for one city to pay for, and that money could be used for more important things. Another reason I feel that we should keep these statues and monuments because it’s a part of our history. Yes, the Confederacy did believe in slavery, but it isn’t about honoring slavery. It’s about understanding that this is what we once were as a nation. Keeping this symbolizes how far we’ve come as a country and how much we’ve progressed. Taking these monuments down would be in a way an attempt to erase our

The modern nation is presently changing, and is always changing, especially politically. To begin, confederate monuments are statues of fighters in the Civil Rights movement during the Jim Crow era. There is currently a debate going on in the United States to whether these monuments should continue to stand or should be taken down for various reasons. In the southern region of the United States, there are over 700 statues that remain. Although many say that monuments preserve the nation’s history, they should be removed because they represent white supremacy and are a reminder of slavery.

A study conducted this year reported that at least 1,503 Confederate symbols can be found in public spaces in the United States. The Confederate symbols include anything from monuments to flags and all the way to schools named after Confederate generals. This means that for years the U.S. has been honoring men for doing bad things like rebelling against the U.S. and fighting to keep slavery. Although taking down Confederate monuments could be equivalent to trying to erase America’s history, leaving them up cause more problems because people believe that the monuments support the idea of white supremacy and encourages people to embrace violence toward other races.

Imagine your children living in a world full of hatred, prejudice, and discrimination from their brothers and sisters of America. The ultimate reality where a minority man or woman can’t cross the street without feeling vulnerable or concerned of an issue occurring because of who they are. I am telling you this because if we let the Robert E. Lee statue remain standing, our world will become a dystopia of animosity and bigotry with the support of White Supremacists and Neo-Nazis. In the late 1800’s, President Lincoln wanted to abolish slavery all throughout the United States, however, the South believed that it was unconstitutional to eradicate slavery. Due to the disagreement about slavery between the Union and the Confederates, they began the American Civil War and endured the four years of combat casualties on both sides, until the Union won and slavery was completely abolished. Subsequently, many statues emerged in southern states honoring Confederate soldiers and leaders that fought against the Union in the Civil War, such as the Robert E. Lee monument. With rich history, like ours, we can see the evolution in our society and learn from our racial, degrading, and dishonorable actions that has affected one to several millions of Americans. Although the Robert E. Lee statue is a form of history, the statues need to be removed from the public property because of the true representation behind the monument and the pain in remembering our infamous racial past.