Why Monuments Should Be Treated With Utmost Respect?

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.

“‘A great nation does not hide its history, it faces its flaws and corrects them.”’ George W. Bush spoke these words at the grand opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture (Nelson). He said this in hopes of keeping monuments reflecting slavery and segregation standing so people today could learn from mistakes in the past. Most monuments dealing with the topic of slavery are Confederate monuments, but they are causing controversy over their true meaning. Some people believe Confederate monuments are about southern pride, but many think they are symbols of racism (Ingraham). The debate over these monuments has caused violent protests like in Charlottesville, Virginia, where a Robert E. Lee statue was removed. Although Confederate monuments anger many people because of the history behind them, they provide lessons that can be taught to help end racism and make a better country. Confederate monuments and statues need to stay to preserve the history of the United States so it is not repeated, but the meaning to them should be altered to show segregation is immoral.

Due to the timeless virtues of the men they portray whether its Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, or any other confederate war heroes, the Confederate Monuments should remain in public places. Their image is typically tarnished because they fought for the South, it’s hard for people

Memorializing is often the way to remember a very important, intelligent, or rich person who lives above the rest of us. When we memorialize it sets a way to remember someone long after they have passed from life. More often than not those we put in statues and remember are those who change the world for the better or discover something new like Christopher Columbus, and his statue in Riverside Park (Deegan, Jim, source B). Lincoln's memorial isn’t where or had any importance to Lincoln, but it succeeds his most infamous speech he ever had “The Gettysburg Address” (Savage, source A). H. Elroy Johnson a famous lobster trapper, had a statue made but never finished during his lifetime, not until after his death, was the real statue made to memorialize him (Roadside America, source f).

There are many monuments in the world and they are all built to honor someone or something that was done by that person. For example, after the Maine Lobsterman was built, the fake bronze statue returned to Maine and spent several decades being moved from city hall to museum to museum. No one seemed to want the man and his lobster. The issue at hand is if the monuments being built are memorializing the person or moment created accurately. Monuments capture legacy and preserve the individual's actions throughout history. Specifically, monuments should consider purpose, location, and size in their creation.

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

"For famous men have the whole earth as their memorial" (Pericles). Memorials are an icon to represent some historical events that have happened or even people who have made a significant impact on society. For example, they symbolize many things that had happened in the past and people could go there and remember some good things that it has caused. People can even go there and pay tribute to the person the memorial is about. There are three sources that show the importance of memorials and why they should be built.

If pictures are worth one million words then a 3-d picture which is a monument is worth one million stories. The purpose of monuments is to tell a story about an events therefore crital thinking adn efforts are placed into making monuments. Depending on where the monuemnt is located and how it is built including its pose and the material it is made up of, it helps the audience live in that moment with the monuments,making the monument and the sudience one.

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 iconic monuments on Monument Avenue are at the center of a debate that is spreading across the entire southern part of the United States. Support has been growing within a group that feels that these Confederate monuments represent hate and oppression. This group wants all of the monuments

This way of life may have been acceptable before and during the Civil War, but in today's society that way of life is not acceptable because times have changed. It is very clear that these statues do not stand for things that our country should believe anymore. Is this what we want people to think of when they think of America. We used to stand for these things ,but now we have changed and our monuments should change with us.

A monument’s sole purpose is to commemorate something significant and celebrate it. Monuments are not merely historical reminders or ways to ensure that an event is not forgotten; they cast the person or event being portrayed as larger than life, victorious, something that should bring feelings of pride. But, Confederates are none of these things. Portraying men who were willing to die rather than give respect and basic human rights to African Americans as heroes deserving of commemoration is a shameful misrepresentation of American history. The history behind the statues, the ideas and hatred they represent, and the very reason for their construction is why Confederate monuments should be removed nationwide.

Monuments, are how we as people can relive the past and be able to put ourselves at that time period. For Americans the 9/11 memorial puts us in the gravity and it gives us the impact of what that disaster did but, it also shows a sense of beauty with how the water falls into the spot where once stood a tall and powerful building. Monuments, have the aura that has a sense of empathy and shows more emotion than words ever could, the Holocaust museum gives a solid reminder of what genocide really is. Monuments and memorials should be based on the size location and what it is actually standing for it should be for someone who has been influential or it should be something of war or tragedy. We as Americans don’t pay attention to local cemeteries but when they see the Arlington cemetery or Vietnam memorial or even the WWII memorial people understand what death is really like and are more appreciative of those people who fought for the United States. Monuments and Memorials are not to remember those who fought for slavery, who have committed genocide, or any acts of treason and terrorism there should be no reason to make a statue that symbolizes something that a culture and a nation does not stand for anymore. Therefore, a Monument should consider the location, size, and why the monument is built along with the emotional aura that goes along with it.

Today I would like to talk about the removal of the confederate monuments. The war ended one-hundred and fifty years ago, these monuments have been standing for quite some time now. These monuments are set to honor those who fought for HUMAN rights. These monuments stand for a very dark part of American history and now they are being taken down because we as a nation simply cannot handle different opinions. I understand that some people see these monuments as a celebration of those who fought pro-slavery, but some also think that they are to celebrate the overcoming of such a horrendous time in our history; these are opinions and every single person is entitled to one. That doesn't mean we disregard such a huge part of what sculpted America