Compare And Contrast Confederate Statues And Monuments

For people who oppose the removal of Confederate statues, history is said to be their biggest concern. Many believe that “Ultimately, removal of the monuments will, quite literally, erase an unsavory – but important – part of our nation’s history” (Brophy 2015). They fear that by removing these symbols, America would be disregarding a huge part of its past. Yet, history itself would not be destroyed, as the impact of the Civil War lives on; only the tokens of oppression would be removed.

In 1861 there was a war that turned north against south family against family. After their war the created monuments that represent the brave leaders that fought for what the believe in. Now there is controversy over if the monuments should be destroyed. This has created a titanic fight between tow sides one side is for the monuments being destroyed and the other side dose not want it to be destroyed. I believe that the monuments should not be destroyed. I believe they should not be destroyed because we need to remember our history. Finally is that it will not stop the violence.

Many have their own views from their own experiences on the matter of the confederate statutes being taken down, the main argument among them being the meanings behind these memorials. The most vocal and main argument is that the confederate statues were put up originally as monuments so they should be taken down due to their disagreeable intent. The other main argument, but less popular one, is that they should stay up because they are honoring American “heroes”. However, a more reasonable side argues that, although, they were made as monuments they became memorials and we should preserve them in a way that’ll keep both sides happy and preserve the history behind them. This is the contextualized view, as discussed in Gary Shapiro’s “The Meaning

Although the idea of taking away Confederate monuments is appealing and presents sound foundation to do so we should leave them where they are. At first, one can argue about the benefits our society would harvest from taking them away, but without doubts that action would come with collaterals that might be even worse than the alternative. As John Daniel Davidson in "Why We Should Keep The Confederate Monuments Right Where They Are", in the Federalist, cites Donald Trump being mocked after elaborating on the idea that tearing down those monuments would, indeed, portrait a logical argument for also tearing down monuments that represent Liberty and Human Rights. Not only with demands but also with vandalization of Lincoln Memorial in

In light of the recent Confederate statue debate, a Rasmussen poll released Monday found that 50% of likely voters agreed with President Trump’s tweet that it is “[s]ad to see the history and culture of our great country being ripped apart with the removal of our beautiful statues and monuments.”

The problem is whether or not confederate statues should be taken down or be left standing in their original places. According to the Washington post Barbra Lee stated that these confederate statues are hate symbols. I disagree that they should be removed but rather kept in their original place. These statues are not supposed to be interpreted as hate symbols, but rather they are our country’s history. These confederate soldiers and commanders are the stepping stones for America to be what it is now. Without these confederate individuals America would not be the same.

This shows that removing them is upsetting more than just some hate groups, but also law-abiding citizens who embrace this side of U.S. history. In addition, violence has gone on even without the Confederate monuments. For example, the Ku Klux Klan, they did not have the monuments to base their actions on, yet they harmed and struck fear throughout towns. According to Nelson, "I don’t fear 150-year-old statues of old dead white men. What I fear is the hatred we see in real time in 2017 on social media and in our political rhetoric," (2017).

For the United States we have some monuments for the Confederate and Union Officers or places. They were to honor what the officers did in and for the war, for those who fought bravely and honorable. There is monuments set up all over the east coast and Central part of The United States of America. There are perceptions of each, good and bad. Most respect both sides and understand why the monuments are there in the first place, as a remembrance.

Even so, forgetfulness is not the total issue. People are now taking our history out of context because it is not what they want to hear. Many of the memorials honor Confederate leaders and soldiers without any mention on slavery, yet people do not know the truth. Humans are blind because of their ignorance. “Confederate symbols were at once works of art, affirmation of the Lost Cause and tributes to white Southerners,” (“Monumental Battle” 8). Many generations of today do not know the truth of the statues and what they stand for. The statues can be used for educational purposes if they are allowed to speak but that is decided by the people.

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.

The removal of the Confederate soldier monuments and memorials, such as the Robert E. Lee statue, and the Confederate Soldiers Monument in Tampa, Florida are sparking massive debates across the nation. Southern communities such as Virginia and South Carolina are being pressured by citizens into removing the Confederate monuments in the town square, claiming that the monuments are a brutal reminder of America’s history of slavery. Despite the monuments’ representation of American history, this is a national debate. Inn some states this has emerged into a deadly conflict in the streets, due to the violent protests and riots in the town square.

A recent hot-button subject in the media has been what to do with Confederate monuments in the South. After the removal of a statue honoring Robert E. Lee, a general in the Confederate Army considered by many to be a hero for the part he played in the American Civil War, a clear divide has formed over whether it was the right thing to do. Some agree with this choice, calling the statues remnants from a time of racial oppression in the United States. Others are outraged, considering it desecration of their proud history. Still others don't understand either side of the issue, and see it as a pointless feud. It is imperative to understand that to many people, these are more than just statues. Whether their impression is positive or negative, this issue goes beyond physical monuments.

If all confederate monuments are removed and or destroyed how will that change the way of life we live in now? The removal of these monuments will not heal old wounds nor would it change history. Racism still and will always exist no matter what so why waste time trying to “prove” to our country that removing these monuments will make our society better when it won’t. These monuments are not causing any physical harm to people so why let the presence of them stop you from living your daily life. By destroying these monuments, you are not only destroying a part of history, but also someone’s artwork. So, blaming 100 plus year old statues of men who died decades ago for our problems today in society only shows the foolishness among.

Confederate monuments are an embarrassment to our country, our citizens, and past soldiers who aren’t being honored in the same way. Day by day these memorials split this country up more and more. None of these monuments were put up after the Civil War they actually started popping up during the Civil Rights Movement. Both of these events are nearly 90 years apart, almost 10 decades! Most monuments began to erect because of The Daughters of Confederacy. Our country should be rid of all Confederate Monuments they falsely portray The Civil War, honor slavery, and symbolize white supremacy.

With many confederate monuments coming down across the country a debate has come up. Should the monuments be removed, or should they stay? Are they racist, or do they show America's heritage? These are questions that are being asked across the country and according to a study by Massincpolling (2017), 28 percent of Virginians support removing the monuments but 51 percent want to keep them, a quarter of them thought the monuments were racist and over half thought they were part of Southern heritage. This data shows that the majority of Virginians think that the monuments are not racist and they want to keep the monuments up, but only 28 percent, which is just over a quarter, of everyone that took the survey thought that they were racist and that they should come down. This means that the monuments should stay up, unless the local governments wanted the majority of Virginians to get mad.