The presence of the Confederate statues in New Orleans became significantly more controversial after the Charleston, SC church shooting in July 2015. The shooter, Dylann Roof, was a white nationalist who intentionally targeted a black church, killing nine people. The shooter “venerated” the Confederate battle flag before committing the atrocity. As outrageous that this hatred still exists in America, this radical behavior is unfortunately nothing new. Acts such as the 1963 bombing of a Birmingham Baptist church were conducted by people who associated with hate groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, a organized community of nationalistic white male who express certain destructive old Confederate values such as racism and inferiority. These groups, who since the Civil War have promoted this violence and anarchy, are still relevant today. According to Southern Poverty Law Center, there are 784 hate groups scattered throughout the United States as of 2014. The Charleston church shooter, Dylann Roof, subscribed to many of these hate group’s online forums. After the massacre in Charleston, states around the country called for the removal of Confederate memorabilia in public places, such as the same Confederate battle flags that Roof venerated that hung outside of state capitols. Immediately after the slaying in Charleston, Mayor of New Orleans Mitch Landrieu pitched a campaign to have the four Confederate statues removed. The New Orleans City Council voted 6-1 in favor that the monuments were to be considered “public nuisances” and ordered that the monuments were to be removed. Though critics have attempted to overturn the decision, a federal judge rejected the lawsuit. It is these relics that people continue to depend on to use and project destructive rhetoric. The leaders and generals who fought for the Confederate Army fought behind this flag, a flag that has today become an icon of bigotry. It is absolutely imperative that any memorabilia used by certain communities of people as a device commit violent atrocities against people of different race, sex, or creed must be taken down from public areas immediately.
Critics of the City Council’s decision have come out and protested the removal of the four statues. Organizations such as the Monumental Task Committee and the Louisiana Landmarks Society were responsible for the federal lawsuit that attempted to determine whether the city had the “legal standing to remove the monuments”. Ben Jones, a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, considered the proposal a “massive insult” to him and his ancestors and argued that the removal of the statues would not help racial tensions in America. Though most people disagree with what the statues represent, many people have feared that setting a precedent for removing historical artifacts would endanger the culture and historical value of a traditional city such as New Orleans. Tulane historian Terrence Fitzmorris recognizes that even though the statues “should be dealt with,” he fears of “eradicating historical artifacts”. However, it has been clarified by the mayor’s press secretary that if the monuments were to be removed, they would be “stored in a city-owned warehouse until further plans can be developed for a private park or museum site where the monuments can be put”.
Though some critics have a valid argument fighting the proposal to remove the monuments, citizens of an incredibly diverse New Orleans have expressed their concern regarding these structures. Elected representatives who represent their constituents, such as the mayor and city council, have strongly fought for these structures to be taken down. A federal judge has rejected a lawsuit to appeal this decision. The people have spoken of what is to be done about this issue. They have decided that these important Confederate relics that surround the city do not represent what New Orleans stands for today. And for communities throughout the nation who are attempting to repair the social damages created by generations of racial discrimination and injustices, the representations of Confederate leaders and battles in public streets and parks must be taken down so the nation as a whole can recover from a history that helped produce so many issues that the United States faces today.
