Opinion

Editorial: Move Confederate statues to Bentonville Battleground

Monday, June 22, 2020 -- History shouldn't be hidden. Nor should it continue to be misrepresented and propagandized. Repeal the 2015 law concerning removing Confederate monuments now. Work with the governor to make the Bentonville Battleground a site for these Jim Crow-era relics - including those in cities around the state that are now being removed and need an appropriate final destination.

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CBC Editorial: Monday, June 22, 2020; Editorial #8554
The following is the opinion of Capitol Broadcasting Company.
Gov. Roy Cooper is right to put public safety first and remove the three Confederate monuments from the grounds of the state Capitol in Raleigh.

The actions of vandals in pulling down statues Friday was reprehensible and dangerous. There is nothing about them or what they represent that is worth endangering anyone’s life or safety.

Their continued presence was bait to vandals. It was an open invitation to those determined to act in ways beyond reasonable protest that could lead to bodily injury and escalate into even more dangerous and lawless activities.

They are down and the state Capitol and downtown Raleigh are the safer and more secure for it.

“I am concerned about the dangerous efforts to pull down and carry off large, heavy statues and the strong potential for violent clashes at the site. If the legislature had repealed their 2015 law that puts up legal roadblocks to removal, we could have avoided the dangerous incidents of last (Friday) night," Cooper said.

The reality is these monuments to white supremacy and revisionist history should have been taken down years ago, moved to an appropriate location where they could be presented with proper context and free of concerns for vandalism or injury to anyone.

Yes, they are a part of history. They are a part of history that imposed segregation and second-class citizenship on people because of their race. It is a historical story worth telling accurately and not glorified or twisted.

The General Assembly needs to repeal its ill-considered 2015 state law that limited taking down or moving Confederate statues. That law was less about peacefully resolving the conflicts over the Jim Crow-era monuments around the state, than to cynically inflame partisan passions and ignite a political base.
The legislature needs to work with the governor to develop an appropriate site at the Bentonville Battlefield in Johnston County. It is the site of the last major Confederate offensive – less than three weeks before Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered in Appomattox.  It is a state-owned 130-acre site, which already includes a visitors center, exhibits and information that puts the site in context.

Rather than continue its relentless efforts to find opportunities for partisan confrontation, the legislature needs to rise to the occasion.

History shouldn’t be hidden. Nor should it continue to be misrepresented and propagandized.

Repeal the 2015 law now. Work with the governor to make Bentonville a site for these Jim Crow-era relics – including those in cities around the state that are now being removed and need an appropriate final destination.

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