60 thoughts on “Blog #131 – Which statues need to be torn down?”

1. Belle Mason August 20, 2020 at 1:27 pm

   #1. – I think that this emphasis on taking down statues is just about right, and I think that we should take down more statues, not all of them, but definitely more of them. In my opinion we should take down the statues of Confederate Generals because although that was a big part of our history, and we should not forget it, the beliefs of the Confederate soldiers and Generals are no longer the beliefs of Americans nor does it represent America in the present time. Because this is the case, that part of our history should not be represented on our streets. I do believe though, that not all statues should be destroyed or removed. The statues of our former Presidents, in my opinion, should not be taken down. For example, Abraham Lincoln statues, in my opinion, should stay where they are because although he was a slave owner himself, as almost everybody was in that time period, he fought for the slaves and against slavery in his presidentcy and should also be remembered for that. We wouldn’t be honoring his legacy if we destroyed his statues. I believe that these statues that represent the Confederacy should be taken down, but I don’t believe they should be destroyed, in my opinion they should be put in a museum because they are a part of our history, and although that part of history was shameful, it would be even more shameful to destroy them and pretend these horrible things did not happen.

   #2. – In my opinion, those statues or monuments should be removed because times have changed and those ideas and beliefs of the American way for the races are no longer the ideas and beliefs of the American people, and therefore should not be represented on the streets of America. We definitely should not change the way those figures are taught and should be remembered because that would be doing wrong to history and to how far we have come. As an American, I am ashamed that the history of my country was the way it was, but I would be even more ashamed if we were to cover it up now and change the way these people who stand for slavery were viewed, especially when we teach them to children. As the video in the article explained, children are taught from a young age the rights and wrongs of life and the way the world works. If we change the way these statues and the people they represented are viewed, then we wouldn’t be teaching the children of America their proper history and we wouldn’t get farther as a Country and as a people because these children will one day be the leaders of our country and we don’t want them having a false idea of these horrible people.

   #3. – I do think we should have statues of our heroes in our country because it is important to celebrate our heroes in our country when they are relevant, but our heroes right now might not be relevant in the future and could be taken down. It is important to make these statues especially for the future of our world because they will and do represent a huge part of history and will give people a better perspective of history by looking at the people we celebrated so much in our time here on earth that we made statues for them and put them up in our country.
2. Maggie DuRoss August 20, 2020 at 1:28 pm

   1)I think the emphasis on removing these statues is shockingly undervalued. According to both today’s APUSH blog post and the video included, the statues in question were one component in a much larger plan to wash away our nation’s true history in an enormous tidal wave of propaganda. Thanks to the UDC, citizens of former Confederate states not only idolized those who personally advocated our country’s greatest shame, but were told that those soldiers were admirable for the will to fight for what they believed in, refusing to accept how awful and twisted those principles were.

   2) Whether or not times have changed, these statues need to be removed and never should have been erected in the first place. No matter how much change can be inflicted upon the outlook of the statues, their original purpose can’t be tarnished. Even excluding the fact that times have changed, these monuments served no purpose but for those who wanted slavery to continue (the UDC) to stand in defense of those who fought to keep slavery. Like the blog post said, memorials honoring losers in a war are very unusual. By the logic the UDC and its sympathizers used, why didn’t we ever build statues of the Redcoats after the Revolutionary War to “remind us of our history?” Besides, restructuring the context of youth education on the subject of those “honored” with statues/memorials or even the Confederacy side of the Civil War in general (especially in former Confederate states) would largely depend upon those in both state and national seats of power actively taking charge to change it. After five months of witnessing congress’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic (namely our POTUS), I don’t have much faith that keeping these statues would do any good.

   3) I had never really thought about this before, but I don’t think we should have any statues of our heroes. Propaganda can corrupt an entire country into chaos. In the context of the Pledge of Allegiance, I’ve heard many people say that not saying it is dishonoring the USA and all those who dedicated their lives to defending it. Although all true heroes deserve recognition, most if not all those worth honoring and remembering do what they do not for the fame, but for the benefits it brings to those who need it. Integrity will always be a crucial trait in my definition of “hero.” Who we now consider to be heroes may not be seen the same way in the future. Just as times have changed from the founding of America to now, times can and most definitely will change from now and into the future.
3. Mark Bossio August 21, 2020 at 6:46 pm

   1) I think the emphasis on taking down statues is just about right. Statues that represent slavery, and the statutes that represent the Confederacy shouldn’t be memorialized with monuments due to the fact that the confederates were considered traitors. Sure it’s a part of America’s history, but we shouldn’t have statues that depict the losers of the war. Statues that depict slavery should be taken down too, because the statues represent a shameful time in American history. I believe that we need to take down more statues, but not all of them. I think that statues that depict say slavery, Confederate generals or the Confederacy as a whole should be taken down, because most the Confederate statutes especially the ones funded by the United Daughters Of The Confederacy try to paint the South/Confederacy as being the good guys of the Civil War. Why would you give a gold medal to second place?

   2) I can see both sides of this issue. I believe if a statue/monument has not aged well and it is no longer accepted it should be removed, for example if that statue/monument is depicting a bad person, or has become offensive in modern times, it could be removed, but not destroyed as it is important to remember our history even if it has not aged well over time. You can put them into a museum and teach people about why the statute/monument was taken down so people can learn from the statute/monument. I also think we could also leave the statues up and change the way that person or event is taught. Update textbooks, and inform people about what truly happened. It’s like people trying to correct textbooks in the southern states because of people like the United Daughters Of The Confederacy misinforming people about the south and the Confederacy making them seem like the victim and that the Civil War wasn’t about slavery.

   3)I think that we should have statues of our heroes. We call them heroes because they did our country a good deed, or they did something heroic, and people want them to be memorialized in a statute/monument. It should be with conditions. The statute/monument should not be offensive, and there should be a reason for the person or event to be memorialized. It should be acceptable that if in the future the statute/memorial is deemed offensive or unacceptable, it should be able to be taken down or people have to get educated about the statue if it stays up. I think it is necessary that the heroes, and events of our country should be remembered and one of the best ways to do that is with a statute/monument.
4. Samuel Goodman August 22, 2020 at 2:43 pm

   1) In America, specifically the south, there are many statues depicting southern generals and other controversial figures as if we are honoring them. Many believe we are honoring those who have done harm to others, whilst other people believe that we are displaying our heritage and past. I stand in between these two theories. I believe that it is important to be knowledgable on our past so that we can learn from it. On the other hand, we must respect that times change and people may feel like a reminder of our history is disrespectful. Because of this, I don’t think that taking down statues is overblown. I see why people may want to do something to destroy history that glorifies men they believe are bad. I am not one who believes we should tear down every statue that does this, but I do believe that the people have a right to choose what symbols of our past they want to be displayed. Erasing the past can be just as harmful as it is beneficial, therefore I believe that we must be careful about taking down statues because they can be still be used for teaching.

   2) Times have changed and because of this, we must be careful of how we teach history. I do not feel like we should remove statues of people who were of importance to our history even if they were bad or had different moral codes than me. I believe that it is important to learn every side of history because that allows us to see the good and the bad on both sides. We can then analyze those qualities and individually decide what side we agree with. If we use these statues as tools for learning we can show the learning generations the truth about these people. Not glorifying the men or ideals behind the statues, but using them as visual tools. These statues depicting important events in our history can show us what happened at a certain time and who was a part of it. This doesn’t mean we are saying this person did the right thing or fought for the right side. It now can be used as a direct way to show that an event happened at a certain time and these men were key figures in that event. If you take the morals out of the statue, though hard to accomplish, you can use statues as visual learning tools and teach about the figures and events in the way you believe they should be remembered.

   3) Having statues of our heroes is an important way of remembering them. They catch the attention of people who might not care to learn about these people in the first place. They bring history to life which can bring a whole new generation of minds to be interested in a subject. It is important to take us back in time with pieces of art, to help us gain knowledge and new perspectives on the past. Statues help us do that. Therefore statues are an important part of learning.
5. Hailey Young August 22, 2020 at 6:21 pm

   1.) I think the emphasis on taking down these statues is just about right. Taking down statues is more than making sure history is correct, it is also a way of making sure racism does not continue to happen or be ignored. Though these statues have been up for many years, it is disrespectful to the POC. Not only was history being taught wrong, but the people who owned slaves, and lost a war freeing slaves, are being praised. The reasoning for statues being up is based on lies that have been taught to many generations. Although these statues represent American history, they should still be taken down. Taking down a statue is not equivalent to not remembering history. The statues will be remembered and talked about, but they will be remembered correctly. The underlying lies and messages of these statues is the real reason they should be taken down. It is an insult to the people who won the war, and to people that were freed. The statues have an underlying message saying even though you are now free, the confederacy still rules over you. If more statues were to be taken down, they would have to also represent the history that was rewritten as lies. As long as a statue has racist undertones or honors traitors of the Confederacy, then they should be taken down.

   2.) Statues that were acceptable 50-100 years ago but are not acceptable now should still be taken down. Though the reasoning behind the statue was different back then, they now represent something completely different. As times change, the world needs to change too, leaving statues that are degrading to groups of people and that give a message people no longer believe in keeps the US from moving forward. Taking down statues is showing growth in the country, that the US can change. Keeping those statues up gives the impression that the US still believes the statue’s messages are acceptable. Leaving these statues up and changing the way those figures are taught would be good, but even though the way the figures are taught and remembered still shows the underlying message that those figures and their ways of life are better than you. Though changing the way they are portrayed does do good, taking the statue down does more.

   3.) The US should still have statues of American heros. As long as it is respectful to everyone and stands for what is right. With that being said, when times change and these statues don’t stand for equality in the future, they can be taken down. Having statues is important in the remembrance of history. As long as the history is being taught correctly and the statue stands for someone or something important, it should be there.
6. Ella Blank August 22, 2020 at 7:49 pm

   1. Statues are meant to honor people who have done good things. People who have statues built for them are also usually viewed in a positive light. I think that statues should be taken down if they are made to honor people who should not be honored. Excluding a few cases, the statues that have been targeted during these recent protests are statues of racist, antisemitic, homophobic, and overall discrimatory people. A person who has any or all of those qualities does not deserve to have a statue, and it should be taken down. It is not a desecration of American history to take down these statues. The people who they memorialize may have earned their place in history, but they should be portrayed as how they were, both positively and negatively. Their names belong in history books, with the full truth, and not on statues with a list of the positive things they have done. The only thing that is a desecration of American history is to not honor the people who have earned their right. Thousands of African Americans and other minorities do not have statues because groups like the UDC have pushed them to think that they are insignificant. I believe that we should take down the statues of people who discriminated against others and put in their place statues of people who have earned it, no matter the color of their skin.
   2. Remembering people and making a statue of them are two different things. Hundreds of thousands of people have their names written and appreciated in history without having a statue. I think that we can still learn about people like George Washington and Andrew Jackson without building statues. I would argue statues of people like Washington and Jackson should be taken down, but not right now. Leaving up those monuments and statues is asking for trouble because people will justify their existence as a reason to make the same mistakes in the future. However, our country and the whole world is facing the toughest widespread challenge that we have seen in 100 years. Taking down these statues now would be a waste of manpower. The reason why so many people want to take down statues is because they feel like the people who they were built for were glorified. Instead of taking down the statues, we should teach future generations the whole truth, not just the ‘cupcakes and rainbows’.
   3. Putting an ultimatum on anything is usually the wrong decision. I would be incorrect to say that we should have no statues of our heroes because some people have truly earned it. I think that statues are not a bad thing because they do help to teach our history. I believe that the ‘qualifications’ for having a statue built of somebody need to be reevaluated. I think that statues should be voted on if they are going to be put in a public place. I also think that the person that the statue honors should be taught about in schools because then they are less likely to be glorified. I also think that statues should be built in moderation. We should have statues of our heroes, but only if it is respectful and in the public interest.
7. Eleanor Limbaugh August 22, 2020 at 9:51 pm

   1. Do you think that this emphasis on taking down statues is overblown, is just about right, or maybe even a desecration of American history? Do we need to take down more statues? Why?

   I think that the emphasis placed on taking down statues is justified, or “right”. All of our history should be taught, learned and remembered, but we as a nation should be mindful of the parts we choose to memorialize. The issue with many of the statues being protested and torn down is that the wrong people made that choice.
   I don’t believe that the original intent behind all of these “bad” memorials was malicious. Statues of Christopher Columbus, General Robert E. Lee, or Jefferson Davis weren’t erected to be threatening, hurtful, or offensive. However, the people who deemed them as such weren’t qualified to judge. A white man might not find a Confederate monument offensive when he passes it in the town square, but a black person who goes by a minute later might. A black person who wasn’t consulted when the statue was to be built. Monuments occupy public spaces. Filling those public spaces up with hurtful, offensive messages makes them inaccessible to the people they hurt. The stories these statues represent should still be part of public consciousness, and should be taught in as much detail as any other part of American history. However, our monuments and idols should be of people whose whole life, not just parts, can serve as a role model for all, not just some.

   2. Statues capture a moment in time and place – the people at that time felt the need to honor someone who they felt needed to be remembered. But times change and so do people. Things that were acceptable 50 – 100 years ago may no longer be acceptable. Should those statues and monuments be removed because times have changed? Why or why not? Or can we leave the statues up and change the way that those figures are taught and should be remembered?

   “Times have changed” is a valid reason to change something. Imagine if, after paper became commonplace, students continued writing only on slates. Or, if after the invention of email, letters were still used as the sole form of communication. The U.S. Declaration of Independence states that “”when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government”. In my mind, a similar logic can be applied to these statues, given how entwined they are with the government and history of America. Many of the monuments currently erected across America represent “a long train of abuses and usurpations,” be they racist, sexist, classist, or otherwise harmful. The Object they pursue is the remembrance and memorialization of history, but general consensus is that they’re failing to do so correctly. Is it not then our right, our duty, to throw off such statues?

   3. Should we even have any statues at all of our heroes? Why or why not?

   We should have statues of our heroes, as long as we come to consensus on who those heroes are (see questions 1 and 2).
   Statues serve several purposes, as role models, landmarks, or decorations. All of these are important functions to communities. A personal or public role model can serve as a guide when setting goals, passing legislation, or making moral decisions. An event or person deemed important enough to memorialize can become an anchor point, setting the tone for the future.
   Statues also find use as landmarks or decorations. They can inspire pride in the people who live alongside them, and send a message about the values of the communities that chose to put up these memorials.
8. Elizabeth Culbertson August 22, 2020 at 10:46 pm

   #1. Honestly, I think this emphasis on taking down statues is just right for our current status in society. There is a HUGE movement going on, and change is happening as we speak. Many of these statues are not only outdated, but they feature too many historical figures who we shouldn’t be looking up to. As an example, there are several present-day existing statues of Christopher Columbus, and he is someone we should NOT look up to. He enslaved so many Native Americans and brought death upon their populations. Also, Columbus wasn’t even the first to discover America, so I personally don’t believe he needs to be highlighted as such an American icon. I feel as though we should highlight the more important figures, who have made a bigger impact on the United States. Not only that, we should be celebrating and creating statues of icons of different races, because (no offense) I think there are too many (particularly white) men who are idolized, and we need to be celebrating those of every race, sexuality, and gender. Taking down more statues would help to erect new and more modern icons of our generations, and better represent present-day America.

   #2. I believe that keeping older statues vs. newer ones should depend on context. Let’s say there was a statue in Kentucky that has blatant imagery of slavery and other racist things. Well, of course that should be taken down immediately and replaced with something, let’s say better? If the statue isn’t blatantly or indirectly offending one particular race, gender, or sexuality, then I say we could leave it up, and teach the younger generations the history behind each one. Educating, from a young age, on what really has happened in history, as well as highlighting how EVERY race, gender, and sexuality has made an impact on American life, is extremely important. It teaches kids that no matter what you look like, or how you identify: you can still be a positive impact on America and inspire change for the better.

   #3. In my opinion, I feel as though we should definitely have statues, however, we need to make sure these statues focus on many diverse people, which in turn will help educate the youth on impactful figures of American history. Statues are extremely important in our society, because they can encapsulate a vital moment from our pasts. In turn, this creates a significant teaching point to the youth, as well as providing a learning experience for those of all ages. For example, if you were touring the ground of former battlefields, it would be helpful to have a visual representation of said moment, as well as information to further educate you. In addition, I strongly support the idea of highlighting many diverse members of the movements of our past, such as Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and many more (not just from the desegregation movements). From a young age, this will help kids to gain knowledge on the struggles people faced for America to get to the point it’s at now. Also, it shows how there are people who look like them, and made a difference in our present-day state, which strongly motivates kids to try hard and do something for themselves and our country.
9. Catherine Bean August 23, 2020 at 3:16 pm

   1)I believe that the taking of the statues was just right and I believe that moving forward more statues should be taken down as well. I believe that the deep rooted racism in our country was born out of the civil war and the inequities surrounding the war. The fact that the statues were built to commemorate the slave owning generals of the South sums up the issue from the beginning. The UDC’s commission of the statues and their teachings around the statues single handedly continued racism in the South and beyond. The meaning behind the statues is both offensive and contrary to human decency.
   2)This is a hard question to answer because it can be argued in many ways. On one hand, the fact that there is dialogue surrounding the statues and a greater opportunity to educate our society, it can be argued that they should be left as part of an educational process. On the other hand, it can be said that the mere existence of them is so offensive that they should be removed in their entirety. Slavery is part of our American history, that is a fact. I think we have a moment to change the way we think about our past, present and future. While I think the monuments are offensive, I think they offer an opportunity to educate. Israel has honored those lives lost in the Holocaust. Yad Vashem shows the horrors of racism in a way that both remembers and educates visitors as does the Holocaust Museum in DC.
   3)People and events should be honored. We have honored those killed in the Vietnam war, we honor those who lost their in 9/11 and we honor all those killed in the Holocaust. I think honoring a hero, someone who is remarkable and contributes in a positive way to our world should be honored and recognized.
10. Maya Juratli August 24, 2020 at 3:24 pm

    #1
    I think the emphasis on removing the statues is just right. Although I completely agree with the movement pushing for the statues to be removed, I think our focus should be elsewhere. To begin, I’d like to point out that taking these statues down is anything but a dishonor to American history, the confederates were traitors to this country, not only by fighting against the Americans, and killing our soldiers, but by ignoring the core values of this country, which lies in its belief that all are created equal. Statues do more to disrespect this country and our government then provide “history” for the South. But even though I believe very strongly against the statues, they’re serving their purpose this way. In this scenario the UDC are the elementary school bullies and we are the kids giving them the attention and reaction they want. While removing the statues is a nice gesture to show we’re moving forward, fixing the racist and biased system should be our first priority as it’ll do much more to advance racial progress.

    #2
    As times change and our societal norms change with them, our expectations will as well. We should teach the truth and all of it, unbiased so we can each individually form our opinions without outside influence to prevent instances of propaganda. But it’s no big secret that in a lot of schools we omit parts of History to seem better. The whole purpose of learning history is to prevent repeating the past’s mistakes. If we read and study propaganda such as the ones that UDC put out,we cannot learn from the mistakes we’ve made in the past. Although some of our past is shameful, the most shameful thing is the inability to recognize those mistakes. For example, we can respect and love the country our founding fathers created while still acknowledging their less than perfect past. And though times have changed the essential values of equality and respect are timeless.

    #3
    For thousands of years statues have been used to worship. In Buddhism, tribal religions, etc. they represent a higher power or perfect figure to look up to and admire. It’s a widely known fact and much repeated mantra, ‘no one’s perfect’. No human being is without their flaws, as time goes on these things get buried – but everyone from Winston Churchill to Walt Disney and even Mother Teresa were imperfect beings who did things that weren’t as great as we make them out to be. The problem here is that statues represent a person’s entirety, the good and the bad. Statues pertaining to an idea or event, such as the Statue of Liberty are symbolic of a greater meaning or idea. Statues such as these represent triumph or resilience and those stand in stark contrast to a singular person with all their very human flaws.
11. Max Young August 25, 2020 at 1:19 pm

    1) I think that this emphasis on taking down statues is just about right. Taking down these statues proves that we won’t accept what happened in the past history anymore. We don’t want to make a big mistake like the UDC by telling the new generation of kids that racism is ok or that this guy is a US legend, while he promoted slavery. The UDC basically kept racism alive and as a country know we would like to do the opposite of that. Yes these statues are part of our past history and we’ll probably keep talking about them for years to come but that doesn’t mean we have to portray them as American heroes and look up to them. These statues are an insult to the people who fought and won the war and the African Americans. We can’t change the past but we can change the present and future, so why don’t we now take the right steps into ending racism. Lastly, if there are any statues still up that symbolize or honors the Confederacy then they should be taken down.

    2) Statues that were accepted 50-100 years ago should still be taken down. Keeping these statues up seem like we are accepting them and don’t want to make change. Even though they were viewed as acceptable back 50-100 years, they now represent something completely different thats unacceptable. This scenario is very similar to having to move on from a friend your whole life now because he’s toxic. You have to move on a do what’s right for you, so in this blog our country has to move on from the past and start fresh. We have to start taking steps by steps to become the best country in the world and to start that we have to remove all of the statues that have honored the Confederacy. We can still learn about these people in very different ways, but people seem to glorify people who have statues after them and that can’t be the case if we want change in this country.

    3) Yes we should have statues that honor American heroes, but they have to stand for what is right now. If in 100 years those statues are viewed as wrong then I believe it’s ok for them to be taken down. Having statues is key for acknowledging their presence in past history. As long as the statues are viewed as meaningful and right then they deserve to still stand. I hope we keep creating statues because most of them end up showing the real heroes in America’s history.
12. Faith Whitted August 25, 2020 at 1:51 pm

    1. I think that the emphasis on tearing down statues is just about right. There are things in our country that have been previously seen as good things, or historical figures thought to be good who actually committed awful crimes. I believe that there is always more work to be done, so I’m sure that there are more statues that need to be torn down. I think that more statues will be torn down once people become more aware of our country’s real history.

    2. Yes, those statues should be removed because times have changed. For example, slavery was abolished in America more than 100 years ago. People 100 years ago had different beliefs than people now have. Many people believed that African Americans were ‘property’ and were ‘⅗’ of a human being, therefore they should be enslaved by their white counterparts. While there are still many racist beliefs in our country today, this idea has been somewhat diminished. The statues in our country that represent people who stood for evil, racist, sexist, or prejudiced beliefs should not be kept standing. In their place, there needs to be statues of people who gave up their lives for freedom for all, or who invented things to make life easier for all of us. The statues that are still standing today need to be exposed for what they really stand for. People need to be told the truth about what really happened in our history. We can’t just ignore that several of our U.S. presidents were slave owners. We can’t just ignore that the man who supposedly ‘discovered America’ massacred several Native Americans. The truth needs to be uncovered, and I think that it starts with tearing down the statues.

    3. I think that should definitely have statues of our heroes. But I think that our country has a long and ugly history of representing the wrong heroes in our statues. While there have been many awful events that have taken place in America, there have definitely been people who have dedicated their lives to liberty and justice for all, and who deserve to be remembered. There have been people who made significant contributions to our country, but have not gotten the credit that they deserve. Many of these people were purposefully hidden from us, oftentimes because of their race, religion, or gender. For example, I remember when my parents took me to see Hidden Figures at the movie theatre. I felt so proud that these three incredibly intelligent and strong black women had helped get the first American to orbit the earth. At the same time, I felt a bit betrayed that I was just now hearing about this story. This major contribution to our country’s history was just now being brought to my attention. So, back to the original question, I believe that it is SO important for little girls and boys to see heroes who look like them, and who fought for our country, and for the greater good of ALL americans.
13. Emerson Lagrou August 25, 2020 at 1:51 pm

    1. I do not think that the taking down of statues is overblown or a desecration of history. It is not overblown because the people that the statues are of did things that today would be considered horrible and unacceptable for leaders in our country to do, and many of these men were actually confederate leaders fighting against the United States. It is not a desecrating history, because it is justifiable. It is not erasing history, because we are not saying that these figures should not be remembered, just that they should no longer be glorified. As far as taking down more statues goes, I think that we should continue to take down statues of men that are no longer worth honouring. I would only start to worry if these people were no longer taught about or remembered even from a negative standpoint, but I doubt that that would happen, as we seem to remember bad things just as well if not better than good things.

    2. The fact that times have changed is true. But the saying “It was a different time” is really just an excuse to ignore messed up, unfair, and altogether bad behavior in the past. People often say that the statues and historical figures can still be honoured because the times have changed but I think it is the opposite. These figures should stop being glorified because times have changed. As far as leaving the statues up but changing the way that we think about the people portrayed in them, to simply have a statue of somebody is to say that they were a person good enough to honor and admire. You don’t see statues of Stalin or Hitler up in town squares so why is it so hard to accept that some of the statues of old, bad, men that we have up probably shouldn’t be there either? I think that the answer to this question is simply stubbornness and inability to change, but those are things that must be overcome in order for humanity and America to advance.

    3. While some statues should definitely be taken down, that is not to say that we shouldn’t have any statues of our heroes. Although there were many less than great people in our history, there have also been ones worth honoring. At the same time that some people were oppressing, killing, and enslaving, there have always been people standing up for what is right, and those are the people who we should be making statues of.
14. Kaitlyn Sanders August 26, 2020 at 4:20 pm

    1.) I think that the emphasis on taking down these statues is just right, and more and more people should be getting involved to permanently remove them. Taking down the statues isn’t just a way to make sure that history is correct and remembered/taught the right way, but it is also a way to make sure that racism is stopped and doesn’t continue to be ignored. There are so many controversial statues depicting confederate generals and other controversial figures, and they were put up to be honored, but we shouldn’t be praising people who were slave owners and fighting for the right to own slaves. There is no correct history put behind the reason those statues were put up in the first place, the only fact is that the UDC put false information into the textbooks and brains of citizens of former Confederate states, making those citizens idolize and want to keep these statues. Even if taking them down won’t be close to the equivalent of American history, it will still be a way to lose the daily reminder of the Confederacy and it’s leaders/followers. If more statues get taken down then it would wipe away the lies represented by them. Keeping those statues up is insulting the people who won the war, and the men, women, and children that were freed. These statues with racist undertones and the ones that honor the Confederacy should be taken down!

    2.) Even if times didn’t change, these statues should be removed permanently and shouldn’t have been built in the first place. Though times were different 50-100 years ago and the reasoning and beliefs of why these statues should’ve been built were acceptable, they should still be removed because the representation these statues hold are much different now. These statues only served a purpose for people who were pro-slavery and the UDC who wanted to preserve their beliefs on pro-slavery for centuriesto come. It’s very sad that now 50-100 years later there are still people who fight to keep the memory of the Confederacy as the lies told by the UDC decades ago. Even if we kept those statues up and just changed the way people were taught about those historical figures, we would be doing more good by taking them down as a whole. Not everything in life needs to stay as it is, times are always changing and with that the world should too, and keeping monuments that praise racist Confederate leaders, and degrade whole groups of people, should be removed, simple as that.

    3.) I think we should have statues of our heroes, but they should be well thought of before putting them up. What I mean by this is, for example the Abraham Lincoln statue that uses racist imagery should be revised because it defeats the purpose of why it was put up in the first place. They should continue to build statues of heroes as long as they are respectful towards POC and stand for what is right in the sense of equality and NOT racism. But in the future (50-100 years) if these statues dont stand for what is right/equality then they should be revised and/or removed. Continuing to build monuments helps to preserve history, but with that being said, as long as the history portrayed on those monuments is correct/portrays equality and they stand for important people or for something important then they should stay there.
15. Malena Price August 27, 2020 at 7:40 am

    1. I think the energy into taking down these statues is right. With the recent death of George Floyd, Amhad Aubery, Breonna Taylor, Jacob Blake and many others that have been killed because of the color of their skin, there has been a lot of social tension built up. We have realized that there are many small influences that add to the bigger picture of racism in this country; one of them being statues. We want to change the way our society is biased, but we are putting slave owners and confederalist generals on a pedestal, which seems controversial. That is why there have been many petitions in favor of taking these statues down, there have been many judges who have issued the removal of some statues and there have been protests where the people have taken it upon themselves to have these statues removed; by writing messages onto them or even tying ropes onto their necks and taking them down themselves. If the values that represent our society are justice, equality and freedom, symbols that go against those principles need to be replaced with others that represent the current values and morals of our society, which may differ from the values and morals hundreds of years ago when those statues were put up. Personally, as an advocate of justice and equality, I believe that the energy being put into taking down these statues is right.

    2. In order to answer this question, we have to understand the social factors that are triggering these effects. Why are these statues being taken down now? Because they are offensive. But then why were they put up in the first place? These people were celebrated back then. The people who have had statues of them built haven’t changed since the statue was put up, the facts are the same, so then why all of the sudden are we taking them down? Because of the interpretation. Maybe 200 years ago the atrocity of owning slaves was socially acceptable, but now it is not. Maybe 200 years ago it was fine to steal someone’s land, abuse the people who were on it and take everything they could from it, but now it’s not. That is why these statues are being taken down, if we are trying to promote equality and human rights, then it’s contradictory to have a statue of a slave owner or a confederalist general in the middle of a plaza on a pedestal.

    3. We should put up statues that commemorate historical events that celebrate equality, justice, and freedom. If there are any statues that go against that set of values they should be taken down or replaced. I do believe statues are important for our culture. They are a form of art and a way to remember our past, they represent greatness and if we want to build a statue of someone they should be the type of person who we can commemorate and remember in a positive light, not someone who has abused others.
16. Ciera Green August 27, 2020 at 1:09 pm

    1. I think the emphasis on taking down statues is just right. These are big statues that were made to “honor” people in history, but these were people that were unfair and unjust to my ancestors. They are not heroes, many of them were slave owners, they treated black people like animals working for them. They were not heroes for us and they should not be honored for anything so I absolutely agree with them being taken down. We are tired of our people being killed over and over. When George Floyd was suffocated and killed by a police officer that heard him saying he couldn’t breathe but didn’t listen, that was the final straw. Why should we be ok with evil men, who tortured and killed black people, being honored with statues. Those statues deserved to be torn down. I do not think it is overblown at all.

    2. During the times these statues were put up, the justice system was even more against black people than it is now. Back then, many white americans agreed with racism, and the way black people were treated did not bother them. In fact, they participated in the beatings and bombings that happened so often. These statues were put up to commemorate the people in history who upheld white supremacy. People supported them and were happy for them to be put up and remembered. I think it is important to be educated and know our history but in a different way. All of the strong black people who helped to shape the world we live in today are only put into the textbooks, and sometimes not even that. They should be the ones who are remembered with big statues for the public to see. We admire them for their strength and courage because we wouldn’t be where we are today. These racist men who our honored with statues should be the ones only in textbooks, they do not get statues to honor them for treating black people inhumanly for hundreds of years.

    3. Statues are an important way to honor people not only in history but just in general. There is absolutely nothing wrong with statues but I believe they should be put up with a lot of thought and care. When I say this I mean, there should be statues for true trailblazers and people that help the country to be better.
17. Hayley Bedell August 27, 2020 at 1:16 pm

    #1 – While it is important to understand and have knowledge on our American history, it is also important to be mindful of what these statues may be representing. Statues are often put up to honor a person and their actions, or maybe a critical event in history. However, we are finding that many of these statues, such as Confederate statues, are glorifying the complete opposite of what our country stands for. Not only that, these statues are extremely offensive and disrespectful to POC, as they are taught to accept that as the norm. Removing a statute does not erase that person or event from history. It will still be talked about and remembered by many. However, the underlying, dark truths of the history would no longer be glorified as a statue in the public eye. That being said, I do think that the emphasis on taking down statues is justified, and the blatantly disrespectful statues should continue to be removed.

    #2 – As time goes on, things will gradually change- and that fact is inevitable. We grow and become more aware of what is socially acceptable, and what can’t be. What we found acceptable in the 1950’s may not be acceptable in 2020. For example, women used to be portrayed as inferior to men. In 2020, the feminist equal rights movement is on the rise- call us inferior, and you get the boot. Things have changed. Statues that portray unacceptable ideals and morals should not stay in the public eye. By removing the statue, you don’t remove its history and story- you remove its physical presence. In 50 years, high schoolers will be talking about WHY that statue was taken down, and the deeper truths behind it. Some could argue that the statues be kept as teaching points- but why do you need an insensitive piece of stone to teach someone about America’s darker past…?

    #3 – It would be unfair to get rid of the idea of statues altogether. Not only are they decorative and placeholders of history, there are plenty of people deserving of recognition in that form. For example, all of the nurses, doctors, and front line workers during the COVID 19 pandemic- they are heroes, and, in my opinion, would be deserving of that kind of recognition. With the Confederate statues, we see these people getting recognition for all the wrong reasons- racism, hate, disrespect, their egos- which is why they should be removed. I think we should continue to dedicate statues and monuments to genuine heroes and real moments in time, but develop stronger standards for who and what is truly deserving of one.
18. Katherine Amend August 28, 2020 at 12:39 pm

    1.I believe taking down statues is just about right, In my opinion I think that we should take down any statues that stand for confederacy, statues that praise slave owners and, commiting genocide. An example would be, Christopher Columbus. Mr. Columbus found the “New World” when really it was already the home of the Indigenous people. He then committed mass genocide to the Indigenous people and stole their land. One of the statues of him that is located in Boston was torn down, thrown into a lake and defaced. I agree with BLM protesters tearing this statue down; it was an offense to the Indigenous people and other POC. Another example of an offensive statue is Stone mountain which is located in Georgia. Stone Mountain has ties to confederacy, the KKK and, white supremacy. Stone Mountain includes Jeferson Davis who was a President during Confederate America. General Robert E. Lee and General Stonewall Jackson, these two were both Confederate military generals during the civil war. This landmark is highly offensive to POC because it has ties to the KKK. In my opinion I think that statues that praise slave owners and Confederacy should be taken down; however, I believe that they should never ever be forgotten. Because America has tried so hard for equality and we should never let the past repeat itself. We should teach in schools that, Confederacy is wrong and that the KKK is a terrorist organization. Statues are meant to honor people who have done terrific things and some just are not needed anymore.
    2. 100% yes times have changed! Some statues might have been okay back then but now can be very offensive. Like Mount Rushmore, two of them out of the four were slave owners and that is offensive to POC. Slavery was a huge part of american history and should never be forgotten but, we shall not honor slave owners with statues. We might have thought these people were heros but now we have evidence of how racist/offensive people can be. I do not agree with keeping them up and changing the meaning, they need to be torn down. Even if we kept them up it is still very offensive to POC. And we should not keep up Confederate statues, they lost the war, it’s time for the tratiors to move on, and never let history repeat itself. And it starts with tearing down the offensive statues.

    3.Yes!!! We should have statues for our heroes, they are a way to honor people who have done good things for our country. We should not get rid of statues altogether. Statues are not decorative things they have a meaning. I think we should have more statues of people who participated in the civil rights movement like MLK. He has a memorial but he deserves a statue, after all he has done for the POC. Or we should honor our health care heroes, a lot of doctors have died from treating patients in the Covid ward, and what about the pharmaceutical companies who are making the Covid-19 vaccine. In conclusion, statues of our heros should stay up and I believe we should make even more statues for our heroes. Although we should tear down any statues that stand for hate and people who owned slaves.
19. Allison Jasinski August 28, 2020 at 2:49 pm

    I think that the emphasis on taking down statues is just about right. There are statues of people that were honored back then for “good” things that they did, but times have changed and the good things that they did, we realize now, were actually horrible. I don’t think all the statues should be taken down though. For example, the statue of Abraham Lincoln, sure he owned slaves, but he also fought for slaves and was against slavery during his time in office and ultimatley abolished slavery. However, I believe that statues of Confederate generals should continue to be taken down. They are disrespectful to people and they glorify racism which is what we are trying to fix in America right now. We need to learn from our mistakes in the past, but we don’t need statues to remind us.
    Yes, the statues and monuments should be removed because people 50-100 years ago had different beliefs than most people now. Many people 100 years ago believed that African Americans were property and that they should be enslaved by white people or that a woman couldn’t do everything a man could do. For the most part, these beliefs or ideas have been eliminated from our society. The statues represent the past and things that were acceptable in the past that are not acceptable now. When you learn about people in history, you need to learn about everything they did, not just the good things, not just the reason they have a statue of themselves. Removing a statue is not going to take away from history or the story of the person. I think that statues shouldn’t be destroyed, just removed. You can put the removed statues in a museum so future generations can learn from it and why it was removed. We can’t just cover up the bad and ignore it, we need to learn from our past.
    I think we should have statues of our heroes because there are many people who made great contributions to our country that don’t have a statue of themselves and deserve to be honored and remembered. If statues are going to be continued to put up, I think there needs to be a system in place where people from all different backgrounds can vote on whether or not they think the statue should be put up. That way we don’t make the same mistake we made before and we honor true heroes.
20. Dylan Stojanovic August 28, 2020 at 9:30 pm

    I think the emphasis of taking down statues is just right. The recent protests of racial injustice has had statues being destroyed, mostly ones of people that have done negative acts. The propaganda that the UDC spread makes sense to see why there were so many statues of people who fought for the confederates which makes it understandable that they are being destroyed with the recent shift in people’s thinking towards racism. Statues are a work of art and when I see one, I think of them as an honor for something someone has done in society that has had a positive impact. The biggest reason I think that the high emphasis of taking statues down is reasonable, is that say I am a young kid, oblivious to what is going on but I see a big statue at the park and I’m interested and take a look. I don’t think it’s good if a little kid is hearing in a positive manner about someone that fought for slaverly to exist and are prejudice towards black people. Times are different than they were 150 years ago, if there are statues that represent a bad cause, they shouldn’t exist, so seeing these statues being taken down, I don’t have a problem with it.

    Before I even saw question 2 I mentioned how times have changed and that they represent a bad cause and I’m totally on board with my previous claim. With times changed, it doesn’t make sense for people to go in public and see statues of confederates and people who were for slavery as we live in a world where everyone should be considered equal. I consider statues to be something of honor, and if we changed how they should be remembered and if we were to have statues explaining the wrong they did, it just doesn’t fit my philosophy of how a statue honors someone in a positive manner.

    Some statues are very historic and are very patriotic to our society such as the Statue of Liberty and the Lincoln Memorial. I think keeping some statues are very good to have such as the 2 I mentioned but some can be very offensive. No matter what they would do, someone somehow is going to get offended so I think the most logical would be doing both. I think harmless statues of just art, or a statue to honor a sports icon is very reasonable, but some statues are over the top such as the Emancipation memorial and it would make sense if they are removed. I think that there should be some type of vote on whether to crack down on statues or keep most of them up as that will be able to make the majority happy.
21. Grace Khamis August 28, 2020 at 9:49 pm

    1. I feel like the emphasis on taking down statues is just right, not overblown. Statues are made to honor impactful people or events that deserve to be recognized. Unfortunately, a surprising amount of statues in America were made to honor evil people that don’t deserve to be honored, like slave owners. When racist, outdated, and overall problematic statues remain standing, it seems as if racism is being glorified. Of course, this is very wrong and should not be happening. A solution to this problem would be to tear down the statues. Obviously not all statues, as some of them are very powerful and represent amazing things in history, but the racist ones should be taken down.

    2. Everything changes with time, there’s no way around it. Some things that were deemed acceptable a hundred years ago aren’t acceptable now in 2020. I believe that outdated statues and monuments that are no longer acceptable in today’s society should be taken down. Once again, statues are for honoring people and events that have made a positive impact in history and can be learned about today. It can be extremely harmful for these outdated and unacceptable monuments to be honored the same way that the good states are honored. It can lead people to believe that the things that were okay back then are okay now, which is wrong. By tearing down old statues, we are not erasing its history, so it is still possible for people to learn about them so history doesn’t repeat itself.

    3. I don’t think it’s fair to get rid of ALL statues. Some are very impactful and deserve to be honored. Many of them are great resources for learning about our history. Although I believe not all statues should be torn down, I believe the ones that no longer hold the same value that they did when they were built should be taken down. It can be misleading to the people in America today. I believe statues should only be standing to honor truly worthy people and events. But after all, nothing is really set in stone, despite the irony. Things change over time. What is seen as acceptable now might not be acceptable a hundred years from now, and that’s okay. We just need to learn and progress.
22. Nadia Whalen August 29, 2020 at 12:08 am

    #1 I think that the removal of statues is a good movement and it places great emphasis on the need for change. The physical removal of statues honoring people who were known slave owners helps to bring more attention to the problem. Their actions which are often not talked about, because they want to be honored and remembered as heroes, need to be known. It’s important to show future generations and even the current generations that these people weren’t perfect and they shouldn’t be remebered that way. While the positive things they did usually out number the negative, they still need to be ‘held accountable.’ On the other hand, I think that some statues’ removal aren’t needed. For example, the statue honoring soldiers of color. The removal of those types of statues don’t help any problems. Overall, I think the movement is a positive and important step to furthering the growth in our country.

    #2 I believe the representation of people through statues can be a very good way to show their heroism and achievements. Although, as time goes by, their actions, which at the time were seen as good, could now be a negative action. I do think that some of these people still deserve to be represented in a statue, or in a different form. Although, people need to be educated about what they did in their past. They still need to be honoring their positive actions, because what they did still deserves to be known. I think some people who did extremely terrible things shouldn’t be in a statue. Some understanding may also end up having to come into consideration, because the time has changed. It is possible that what they did in the past wasn’t seen as a bad thing, so they weren’t knowingly being bad. On the other hand, it can be an obviously bad thing which they should’ve realized. A lot of the discrimination happening today will most likely be looked at from future students, similar to how we look back at history now.

    #3 I don’t think the complete removal of statues is necessary. For example, there are many memorial statues for veterans in the war, which deserve to be honored. Many memorials are represented with statues and it’s a very good way to show what they did. It can show people what it was like in that moment, which will teach people about the history of the events. My great grandfather fought in the war. He was just down the hill from the men depicted in the rising of the flag statue. While he wasn’t in that statue, he is still honored and shown through that. In summery, I think that removing all statues wouldn’t help us, but some statues can be taken down.
23. Alex Koellner August 29, 2020 at 12:39 am

    1. I think that the taking down of statues is extremely overblown. Some of the statues that are getting taken should be taken down but a vast majority of them should be kept. It is important to keep these statues because without reminders of the past we can never grow. When you look at a statue of someone who was a slave owner you think to yourself that they were a bad person and no-one like that should ever exist again but if that statue weren’t there that thought wouldn’t come into your mind. The majority of these statues are of good people however and have been destroyed by rioters for no reason, for example, statues of Abraham Licoln who helped free slaves have been destroyed and a statue honoring black soldiers was also destroyed.

    2. These statues shouldn’t be removed because times have changed. Abraham Lincoln helped to free slaves but he was also a slave-owner. Back then it was normal for white people to own slaves and even though that is not a good thing many slave owners did amazing things for this country and helped to shape the world we live in now. Without Lincoln there could still be segregation and slavery in the United States so destroying a statue of him is unjust because even though he was wrong for owning slaves he is a American hero and did many great things. The people who these statues have been built in honor of should be taught according to the facts. If they were a slave owner then that should be mentioned but that shouldn’t discredit any of the potential good things they did. Almost every historical figure in America from that time period owned slaves so if they are considered bad people for that and not taught about correctly the next generations will grow up thinking that these people were bad when some were not.

    3. In my opinion I think that there should be statues to honor heroes because it is something that stands and helps people remember who they were and what amazing things they accomplished in their life. If there weren’t statues many people who have sacrificed their life for this country could be forgotten about and wiped from the United States history. Statues are some of the most powerful ways to show appreciation for people and the things that they did. However there shouldn’t be statues to people who aren’t deserving of them because you shouldn’t honor someone who only hurt this amazing country.
24. Lea Milanini August 29, 2020 at 10:29 am

    1. It should be right to remove the statues of personalities that built their lives and fortune on the base of slavery and persecution; those citizens shouldn’t be honored for what they did; this is why the statues of the UDC should be put down. Putting statues down is currently a symbol for all of the minorities in this world that are suffering from persecutions. It is certainly inducing the population to think and act differently, and some things are being done to make the lives of those minorities better.
    However, removing the statues of people that were not significantly involved in these movements of racism and discrimination shouldn’t be right; when the statues of those men or women were put up, it was most surely not for their slight relationship to slavery. If we decided to put down those monuments, we would actually be doing to those individuals what we want the minorities not to suffer from: we would in fact be discriminating against the people whose memorials are being taken down.
    Besides, removing those statues will not change what happened in the past; instead, it is like saying we are considering that nothing really happened, by erasing all of the concrete artifacts that have remained of these periods in time. Remembering the outrageous deeds that occured in history, while recalling the things that shouldn’t be reproduced is fundamental, and keeping these statues may help contribute to that. Maintaining those testimonies will also help alerting the future generations, to keep them informed of what took place, and for them to not reproduce the past either. It is actually similar to the concentration camps: they were built by the Nazis, so we might think that they should be destroyed. However, we do not actually destroy them all because there is the duty to remember what happened.
    More than putting down statues, the most important thing to do should be to teach history to new generations using good moral values.

    2. Because times have changed, some statues and monuments may be removed, but not all of them should be.
    Personalities that took profit from the minorities in order to build up their lives and fortune shouldn’t have a tribute glorifying them; they are highly criticable and it is not right to have statues representing them (the statues of the UDC would be an example).
    However, the statues of people that only had a minor relationship to slavery shouldn’t be put down. When these statues were constructed, it was to honor the person for the good things he/she did, and not for him/her being slightly related to slavery or not. Moreover, at this point in time, slavery was common, and many notable people had slaves.
    Keeping them is also a duty we have for remembering our history, and not reproducing the wrong parts of it.
    Education has a huge role on how the next generations are going to perceive these statues (its role in evoking those memorials is even more important than the decision of keeping the statues or not). This is why it is essential for the teachers and the textbooks being used to have good moral values, and teach history in a way that does not focus on the racist and discriminating parts of the statues.

    3. We should certainly have statues of our heroes. It is important to remember them for the good they did in the country, for everything they contributed to the nation. I also think new statues should be made with modern heroes of all races, religions, and of the two genders. It is important for kids of different cultures and backgrounds to be able to look up to someone who was devoted to his/her country, while wanting the best for everyone. Martin Luther King Jr. is an example of such a hero, and it’s right to have memorials and statues of him in the nation.
25. Jayson Smith August 29, 2020 at 12:57 pm

    1. I believe that more statues need to be taken down because statues are meant to honor great people who have done great things in the past, and the people who are being depicted in these statues were not great people by any means. I understand the desire to preserve history, but I feel like there’s a difference between glorifying history and simply preserving it, and I think statues fall into the former category. Most of these men were people who owned slaves and thought of colored people as animals and property rather than actual human beings. While these were common beliefs back then, these are no longer the beliefs America stands for today. A better way to preserve history would be in books, telling both the good and the bad about these people. I think the statues would be better off in places where people can look at them as simply history, and not heroes who were great and everyone should look up to. If we want change to come in this country, a good place to start is by thinking of these war veterans as they actually were instead of as heroes who died for their country.

    2. I think that while those statues may have represented the ideology of people back then, they should definitely be taken down because that ideology is no longer accepted today, and should not have been accepted in the first place. The treatment of slaves was absolutely horrible, and these statues are sending a message that what these men did was heroic and great. I think that these statues do not necessarily have to be destroyed, but maybe moved somewhere else such as a statue graveyard or a museum. They should not be displayed in a place such as outside a courthouse or in a park, because that is no longer what this country stands for. Having statues in public places like that only reinforces what the UDC was trying to do; put the idea in people’s minds, especially children, that what these people did was okay and should be celebrated.

    3. I think that we should have statues for our heroes in this country, because it is an important way to remember what they did for our country. I think that remembering history is a very important thing for us to do, because of the people who sacrifice so much so that we could live the lives we do today. I also think it is important to try and make sure that the person getting a statue actually deserves a statue.
26. Kirsten Jasinski August 29, 2020 at 3:18 pm

    1. I think that the emphasis on taking down statues is just about right for our world today. I believe that the statues of confederate generals and slave owners, and any other statues that honor people that promoted social injustice and people who continue to promote social injustice should be taken down immediately. Why should we honor these people like they have done something good, when they haven’t. It’s not fair to the Black community to be reminded of what terrible things happened to their ancestors in the 16th century. I believe that continuing to have certain statues standing represents Americans honoring what these people did, knowing how unjust and unfair POC were treated, and are continued to be treated. The history of the south should be corrected, there shouldn’t be two sides of the story like some people believe there is. Taking down the rest of the controversial statues would be the first step in correcting the history of the past. Black people should never be treated like that, as a matter of fact, no one should ever be treated which is why all statues of people who promoted social injustice should be taken down. The only exception would be statues of Abraham Lincoln, yes he was a slave owner, but he did abloish slavery and I think we should remember him as the man who abolished slavery.

    2. Yes, all controversial statues should be removed, Times have changed drastically, and America should no longer promote the racist people of the past, maybe those people were thought to have done good things back then, but now we know that no one should ever have to go through that, what black people have to put up with is dehumanizing and absolutely disgusting. Taking down certain statues would be almost like leaving the past, without forgetting the past, yes we know what terrible things happened and we don’t need a constant reminder of that, but no we will not forget it, because the minute you forget something the more likely you are to repeat it. Instead of having statues that represent the inequality of the past, we should have statues that should represent equality in the future. I believe one day we will live in a world where everyone is viewed as equal, it will take some work but hopefully i’ll still be alive when the day comes.

    3.There’s certain statues that would be acceptable to have such as statues of MLK and Gandhi, because they actually did something good for the world, and are still being viewed as good people even long after their passing. Some people have very much earned the respect of getting a monument/statue built in their name, and I do not think we should take that honor away entirely, but there should definitely be rules and qualifications to have a statue built in your honor.
27. Lilliana Dittrich August 29, 2020 at 5:02 pm

    1)
    I think that there should be more media and press on the removal of statues, but most of the attention these actions are getting is negative. I think that there should be positive media on taking down these statuses, because most of the statues that are being taken down stand for very hateful things. Many argue that the confederate statues stand for state rights and history, but when it is all broken down, it was the states right to own slaves. It was a very dark time in US history, and while it should still be taught, we should not memorialize people who fought for the right to own slaves. We should teach what really happened, all of the anger and sadness it brought, so the US can learn from its mistakes and make amends. Taking down to statues will not destroy the history, but it will take down the glorification of slavery. Same goes for the Christopher Columbus statues. Columbus decimated native populations, stole land, and many more horrific things, and yet some people still see him as a hero, and we need to educate on what he really did, and no longer glorify him and his deeds.
    2)
    I think the statues should be removed. As a country, our laws and government change often. Putting up a statue, and refusing to take it down is slowing the process of positive change, something that we strongly need in this country. If we leave the statues up, people will see a strong battle captain who looks victorious, when in reality it was a confederate soldier. The country must change and make amends, and leaving up statues of slave owners and people who fought for the right to own slaves is not only disgraceful and disgusting, but humiliating as a citizen of the US. History should not be forgotten, but it should be used as a bringer of positive change.

    3)
    I am slightly torn on this subject, as I see the pros and cons on each side. The pros of having statues are nice, such as remembering history, and specific people who earned it, but there will always be people who abuse such power, and that put up statues of people who don’t deserve it. Putting up statues, in my opinion, can also be a waste of tax dollars. Instead of using that money for education, or helping the homeless, or bettering the community, it is used to put up something pretty, that in the long run, won’t help the community that much. Instead of a statue, have a local artist create something. That would help local artists with advertising, help the small businesses, and make public places much more beautiful. Overall, I think if someone wants to privately fund a statue to put on public property, the reason the statue is being put up should have to be approved and scrutinized as not to glorify anything that should not be.
28. talia rubin August 29, 2020 at 7:01 pm

    1.The emphasis on taking down the statues is just about right in my opinion, and is not a desecration of American history. Statues are a way of honoring. The statues of these fellow men should not be honored. todays time we should not be honoring people who believed slavery was right. Even though it was a different time, it should stay in that time. Presenting to people now that we still should respect these men and have statues of them is wrong. One of the statues was John C. Calhoun and according to the article he was the founder of the idea that slavery was a “postive good.” Taking down these statutes is just one step closer to ending racism and every step counts. From just being young and not knowing anything yet, and seeing these men might make someone young believe that they were good people. Taking down the statues is right. We don’t need that part of history in today’s age.

    2. Even though times have changed the statues should not be up. I do agree our history is important to know and to learn about. It is important to be educated on our past even though it is shameful. But you can do that by reading a factual book about it all. But not having a statue honoring people who believed in slavary and racism. Statues are ways of showing admiration. Having the statues in today’s age gives the idea that the messages the statues gave are okay. When your not as educated on racism yet you could interrupt that slavery was okay if these men were so honored they had statues then they must be good men and what they believed was right? No, they are not and that is why they should be taken down. We are tearing the statues down so history doesn’t repeat itself.

    3. I do not believe that we should have famous well known statues, like the confederacy ones. But having one in your town’s museum or something like that is okay. Something a bit smaller. I believe this because our world is way to controversial. and someone else could have strong views why they do not like a certain person. Everyone has their own idea of a “hero”. Just how some people still believe that it’s okay to have the statues of the men a part of confederacy. Everyone has very strong and different opinions and having a well known statue of someone’s hero might not be someone else’s hero.
29. Brandon Counts August 29, 2020 at 10:46 pm

    I believe that the emphasis on taking down is just right. Statues are meant to honor and glorify people, but statues that memorialize confederacy are wrong and should be torn down without a second thought. While I do think that it is important to remember and learn from the past there should not be statues idolizing people and figures of the confederacy. I would also like to add that these statues shouldn’t have ever been made in the first place, considering that the confederates were traitors to the union and wanted to create their own country. Allowing these statues to remain standing is just blatantly disrespectful, especially to African Americans. It’s not desecration of American history because the people in these statues are still in the history books and have already left their mark on history, so taking down statues of them is completely justified. This situation would be considerably better if it wasn’t for the UDC, who twisted history to make it seem like the confederates were the good guys and did nothing wrong. I think that if we continue to remove these statues that we can completely wash away the narrative of the confederacy being a good thing.
    I believe that we have grown over time and that those old ideologies and ways of thinking are no longer acceptable. Even when it was ok to think that way those statues still should not have been made since they were glorifying the loser of a war which was very uncommon. I do agree that the statues might stay up if we used them as visual examples of why the confederacy was bad. I still think it would be more effective for the statues to be torn down because even if we teach people about the fact that the confederacy was born through racism and anger some will still view them as the heroes and then no progress will have been made.
    I think that there should still be statues of heroes because they made a positive impact on history worth honoring. For example, the MLK memorial still stands because of his positive impact on history for African Americans and is regarded as a hero. Heroes deserved to be memorialized and remembered throughout history for the good things that they had done throughout their life. But for all we know some statues that are deemed acceptable now may not be 100 years from now I think it’s the right of the people to remove statues with a negative or hateful history behind them. As people, we just need to keep moving forward and learn from the mistakes of the past.
30. Austin White August 30, 2020 at 12:17 am

    1. Personally I feel that the emphasis on taking down statues is just right for now. While the statues might appear as if they are a way of support for the person/battle the statue is for, I think that they shouldn’t be looked upon as such. I believe that while in the past when these statues were made they were most likely used for shedding light on a person/battle for their beliefs, I think that they should be taken down as they are recognizing a bad side of our history that while should be remembered, isn’t something that should be memorialized . I wouldn’t say that we need to take down all statues because they show a bad side of our past, but I think that many of them should and understand why many people think that they should be taken down as they could be offensive to them or their ancestors and aren’t an acceptable representation of what our nations views should look like today.

    2. I do believe that these statues should be taken down because times have changed. These statues that shed light on past views are not something that we should look up to and memorialize the way they did in the past. Statues that show/support slavery, confederate views, and just views we would not consider acceptable today should be taken down as they are not a good influence and should not be shown as such. While these statues should be taken down they should not be taught differently. We would not want to cover up our past and change the way these statues are viewed, people should be able to understand and remember that the US as a country has made mistakes in the past so that we don’t make the same mistakes in the future, and many of these statues displayed those mistakes in a way of honor which is not right.

    3. I think that we should have statues of our heros. Many old statues that represent unacceptable views nowadays were acceptable during the time that they were made. But we can still make statues in the present even if our views change and might get the statues torn down in the future. Memorializing people is a common thing that people have been doing for millenia and shouldn’t be stopped because of what people might think of it in the future. Memorialization should be a way to show history and the progress we have made for our country.
31. Lily R Schafer August 30, 2020 at 11:47 am

    No, I think this is an appropriate reaction. While the importance of US history is important we have to be careful about which parts we celebrate and uphold as a lot of US history could be considered dark. As for statues, we do need to take away ones of bad historical characters such as Christopher Coloumbus, confederate generals, etc because it feels like we’re remembering those people and what they stood for. You dont see Germany putting up statues of the Nazi party, and even Lithuania took down Stalin and Lenin statues.
    2) Either we keep them up and change our education or we take them down and don’t change. Did you know not all states require the Holocaust to be taught? If statues stand for honoring people and that time then yes they should be taken down. Yes, especially since times have changed and what those people were doing were atrocious, then yes we should take them down. A better way we could leave memorials of the victims of some of the bad people (ie Christopher Columbus) and educate about that. I find it weird and suspicious that people are so fiercely defending the statues like yes american history is important but we can remember and teach ourselves about it without blatantly putting up statues of and therefore inherently celebrating racist, homophobic people and r@pists. Now as the situation for re-educating and keeping them up, I believe that this will never happen because as it is a lot of states already keep some stuff on the down low, or don’t have to teach important history and I think that would never work. Plus, correct me if i’m wrong but i believe state mandates teaching? I’m not sure if the FedGov can make the states teach anything?
    Yes. There are some very underrated figures in history which need to be remembered. A Lot of people have made a long lasting impact on American history and should be remembered, but it is kind of weird that a lot of confederate generals, bad people, famous people who did bad things and even good people but are put up in the wrong way (mount rushmore) are still up rather than people who deserve it. .
32. Matt Meilinger August 30, 2020 at 12:12 pm

    I think that the emphasis on taking down statues is just about right in today’s world. I think the Black Lives Matter movement is doing a great thing by pushing for statues that support racism to be taken down. I agree that statues that display racism are not okay, and should be removed from public places. I think we should take down all of the statues that support racism and slavery, because they can be offensive to many people. Statues that display beliefs that aren’t okay in today’s world should not be acceptable, even if they were okay at some point in history. These statues are on display for anyone to see, therefore statues displaying beliefs that aren’t accepted today is not okay. People who aren’t informed may think these beliefs are okay, when in reality they aren’t.
    Statues that were made 50-100 years ago may have been okay back then. If they aren’t okay anymore, I believe they should be taken down. Statues that support racism should not be on display in public places, even if those beliefs were common at some point in history. If those beliefs aren’t believed to be okay in today’s world, they shouldn’t be on display for anybody to see. On the other hand, I believe that statues of people like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson should stay up. Even though they were slave owners, they still played a huge part in shaping our country to become the way it is today. I think we should change the way kids learn about our historical figures similar to George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. That way younger children don’t see the founders of our country as slave owners and bad people.
    I strongly believe that we should continue to build statues to remember the heroes of our country. It is important to remember our past and the people involved in it. People who played a big part in our history should be remembered. If a statue is later found to be inappropriate, it can be taken down, just like people are pushing for in today’s world. Just because some statues aren’t found to be supportive of the common beliefs today, doesn’t mean we should stop building them. There are people who fought for our country, and risked their lives to keep us safe. Those people should be remembered and memorialized, not forgotten. I think statues are a good thing, and can be helpful learning tools for younger people.
33. William Penoza August 30, 2020 at 12:24 pm

    Question One: I personally think that the taking down of statues is mostly wrong, I say mostly because every situation is different. I believe that history is something that must be recorded, especially the bad. George Santayana once said “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”, this means that if we simply destroy all of the records of horrible things that have occurred in America they are bound to repeat themselves. Again, I say mostly because I believe that there are some statues out there that do not reflect American history but rather display sheer bias and racism. These statues serve the sole purpose of enforcing the rule of those whom they display rather than remembering the ways that they were wrong. These statues should, in my opinion, be either taken down or repurposed to represent the past rather than the present. Obviously there are good statues out there such as the statue of Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln memorial, these types of statues don’t need to be changed. In conclusion, I believe that taking down a statue is wrong unless it displays clear negative ideologies.

    Question Two: I believe that we should change the way we remember these people. When we look at the average American statue that raises concern, it is almost always a confederate general/soldier. When these statues were built they were of people who were seen as heroes, the way we look at our current soldiers. Back 50-100 years ago, times were different, people wanted to remember confederate soldiers/ generals as heroes. Today we can no longer view these men as heroes we see them as villains. We need to change the way that these people are taught and remembered, but they still need to be remembered even if what they did was very, very wrong.

    Question Three: We should have statues. I think statues are a great way to display an event or person who has made a great impact on the world we live in. Statues are a great way to teach about the past as well as a great way to honor a person who spent their life or even lost their life fighting for our country. Whether fighting for our country means taking a bullet overseas on the front lines of the military or fighting for civil justice in their homeland, these men are still HUGE as far as the world we live in today. I would not be surprised if we saw some statues be built of some of the leaders pushing quality right now, we are going through change, and this will be remembered for years and years to come.
34. Chase Richardson August 30, 2020 at 12:49 pm

    1). I think that the emphasis on taking down statues is just right; I think that we should take down some of them, but not all of them. An example of statues that we should take down includes Confederate soldiers. Society currently links confederate history with a racist past, and therefore, these statues cause more harm than good for those who view them. For historical purposes, we should leave statues of presidents, as they are important leaders in our country’s history. The Abraham Lincoln statue is an example of a statue that we should leave up; yes, he owned slaves, but he signed the emancipation proclamation, which freed all of the slaves and is a big part of US history. With Abraham Lincoln’s statue being up, we are honoring his contribution to our country.

    2). I see both sides to this question, but in my opinion, I think that only some statues should be removed because times have changed and these statues are no longer socially appropriate. While Confederacy statues may not be acceptable in this day and age, Presidential statues should stay up to honor their legacy and what their contributions to the country were. For example, we should leave up the statues of most famous African American soldiers because we’re honoring the people – especially the African American people that went to war and fought for our country. On the other hand, I can see why people are taking them down. America did not have the cleanest, most friendly history, and the monuments of Confederacy show that, and we should take those statues down. As a country, we have learned from our mistakes and removing some of those statues shows that we are ready to move forward, which is a great thing for our country.

    3). I think that it is very important to have statues because they show historical events/ figures. For example, a statue of a president values the work and the advancements that he has done for our country. It is also important to have statues that honor people for their work and sacrifice for our country. In 8th grade, we went to Washington D.C. to view statues for soldiers that lost their lives serving our country. Another example of why we should have statues is so that people in the future can look back and see what the world was like before they were born and who was important and what they did to help their country.
35. Ian Duncan August 30, 2020 at 1:23 pm

    1) I believe that the emphasis of taking down statues is just about right, not overblown. With all the events occurring throughout the country, it has opened a lot of great conversations. With all the media coverage on changing times, many middle ground people are taking a stand. With all the new attention from new protests action is being taken. Taking down certain statues has led to once unforeseen conversation across beliefs. One problem with statues is they are seen as different ideals through different minds. As seen in the video, UDC changed history, and creating movements can open up once closed doors. Statues also stand for a reminder of this country’s awful past, something we can learn from going into the future. I believe that there are two sides to every story. Some statues should still stand to remember our history. Others should be removed or even taken to a museum, so they are preserved as a lesson to everyone.

    2) Old statues should not be removed because times have changed. This is a very torn issue, as many people have a variety of thoughts. Nobody wins in these situations, as however hard we try people will not be happy with solutions. Even though many of these statues depict bad events, they represent a huge time in our history. Many people made good and bad choices, but I believe that they should be remembered for their good. Of course, if a statue is too vulgar to be seen in a public space, it should be taken down. We definitely should change the way the statues are taught and be remembered. A statue in the south taught to resemble their past, can now be shown as a racially unequal act. But, if the statue was taken down the lesson would have never been re-taught.

    3) Yes, statues of our nation’s heroes should be added. People such as Abraham Lincoln are memorialized in Washington D.C. Lincoln ordered the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed Confederate Slaves, but he also did bad things. And, choosing to void his great achievements because of average decisions in his time is wrong. The problem is, even good people do bad things. A hero seen today, can be seen as a villain in the next 50 years. Which is the exact problem we are facing today. I think statues serve a purpose, and we need statues that represent all races and religions. I don’t believe we need to recycle people on statues every time a historical event occurs. Instead, we need to learn what the issue is and how it could be fixed.
36. Jack Abbot August 30, 2020 at 3:05 pm

    1) I think the emphasis on taking down statues is just about right. some statutes do not represent people we should honor or look up too, therefore they should be taken down. For example, Christopher Columbus has many statues throughout America, but do we really want to have a statue of someone who abused Native Americans in our home country? Or see statues of people who discriminated against others? Shouldn’t we have statues of people that show leadership, courage, kindness and did not exploit anyone to achieve those things. I do believe we should take down some more statues that are offensive and represent people who used their power to oppress others and keep statues that show a positive meaning and represent what America strives to be today. Taking down statues is a small step in making a change for the better. Statues can have a positive and negative impact, the statues that we keep and put up need to show the people and younger generations what doing the right thing and having a good impact is like.
    2) I believe that statues that were put up in the past to remember someone and what they did should be decided to stay up or be taken down based on present time. It may have been normal at the time to do things that are not ok anymore, but that does not justify their actions and we should not keep their statues up for people to idolize. It’s hard to see something and only think of the positive things they did, nor only be looked at for their positive aspects. Therefore, I don’t think it is right to change the way those figures are taught and should be remembered because they should be remembered for their actions no matter what they are.
    3) I do believe that we should have statues of our heroes. Statues are symbols and give us something to model ourselves to be like. Seeing a statue impacts peoples lives, especially the younger generation. People like Ghandi and Martin Luther King Jr show us that we need to stand up for what is right and that our voice is a very powerful weapon that we can use for the greater good. Albert Einstein symbolizes never giving up and to believe in yourself even if other people don’t believe in you. In all statues are a great honor and should only be bestowed by people who are worthy.
37. Samuel Walsworth August 30, 2020 at 3:12 pm

    Taking down statues of Confederates and Slave owners is a way to strike a message against racism, but many of the statues being taken down are unjustified. Taking down statues in general is a way to give a message. When people take down statues they are opposing what they think that statue and person represents. Taking down statues of people who represented slavery and segregation and other heinous acts is a way of showing that they never deserved a statue in the first place, such as many Confederate generals, but for people like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Ullyses S. Grant it is unjustified. You don’t look at how immoral someone is by comparing them to our modern basis for morality but rather at how progressive they were in their time. George Washington’s Constitution and his declaration for equality of all people was extremely progressive for their time although it wasn’t fully realized at the time, people later would fight for equality of all peoples using the ideas laid out by the constitution. Defacing and taking down statues of people who don’t deserve it ultimately hurts the movement’s message because a movement is judged by its radicals.

    Like I said in the first question people should be judged by how progressive they were in their time period rather than by our modern morals. If you were raised in the 1800s south chances are you would have extremely racist and backwards views. Almost every philosophist and great thinker in history had comparatively many extremely radical views compared to our modern society, but we shouldn’t tear every single one of their statues down. You can acknowledge a person’s achievements while also acknowledging their downfalls, of course there are still statues that deserve to be torn down such as confederates and slave owners who had no other achievement in history.

    Statues should be ways to commemorate people who had great achievements like Martin Luther King and Abraham Lincoln. American heroes who innovated, or made great leaps in human rights and ethics. People whose achievements led to people make statues of them to capture a moment of time and celebrate their triumphs, this is what they should be used for. Of course in reality many statues are made of people who don’t necessarily deserve them as anyone who has enough money can have a statue, even people with backwards views such as confederates and slave owners unfortunately.
38. Lauren Kamp August 30, 2020 at 3:53 pm

    1. I believe that taking down statues that glorify racist parts of our past history is the right thing to do. Statues are meant to inspire the viewer by memorializing heroes that represent the highest achievements of our shared history. As civilization evolves and standards for norms in society change with the times, often we are faced with truths of an uncomfortable past. Back then people might have thought that they should be honored but now as we look back, we recognize that these people do not deserve to be honored. They do not represent the best among us then or now and this is why it’s not a bad idea to get rid of certain statues. What shocks me the most is that we haven’t developed a standard to judge the value of a public monument as a continuing conversation. Why haven’t we taken down these statues earlier? I believe that we should establish an impartial group of historians, artists and community leaders that can weigh the pros and cons of existing monuments found in public areas.. If someone disagrees, then our country protects their rights on their private property.

    2. In my opinion, I think we should continue to remove those statues of people that were thought to be okay 100 years ago, but now do not stand up to today’s test. Particularly the statues supported by the United Daughters of the Confederacy noted in the linked video shared on the blog are troubling. They represent a coordinated effort to narrate a different story that continues to divide the country. Even when they are torn down, statues can be used as a lesson to not let history repeat itself.

    3. While times have changed drastically since then and the beliefs of those back then are not the same as what we believe in now, I don’t think we need to take down every statue. I think we should still have statues of our heroes. We should honor those who have done good deeds for our country or represent the highest achievements in our culture. My 8th grade trip to Washington D.C. exposed me to the most statues I’ve ever seen and provided a touch point for the ongoing story of our country. The sheer size of the Lincoln Memorial was fitting for the place in our country’s history. Having statues is also a way of spreading knowledge and different opinions.
39. Mike Ajluni August 30, 2020 at 4:12 pm

    1.In my opinion, the emphasis on taking down statues is right. I understand that lots of statues have history, however most of them that got taken down were either bad history, history made by the UDC which is made up history, or statues of people who although did some good things, also had just as much bad with them and to me, someone who is half good half bad does not deserve a statue at all. Although there were a few statues that did not deserve to be taken down like Abraham Lincoln, Everyone was very mad and frustrated at that time so I understand why it happened. In conclusion statues are for remembering, honoring, and showing gratitude to people, and most of the people who had their statues did not deserve them in the first place.

    2. I think that statues should be taken down because times have changed. As I said earlier statues are to honor and remember people’s impact. If a person’s impact was positive at the time the statue was made, that does not mean it is positive enough now to have a statue. Things that the people who had statues did were not right at all and due to that those people don’t deserve statues now. I think there are way better ways to learn about our history other than statues because lots of the history we learn about, we should not be celebrating it with statues. When lots of those statues were made, the people who got statues were racist and now its not acceptable now to be celebrating those people in any way.

    3.I definitely think that there should be statues for our heroes. Just because lots of the statues there currently are not for hero’s, the ones that are there that are for hero’s should stay as a way to honor, remember, and show gratitude as I said earlier. To me, hero’s deserved to be rewarded as such due to many hero’s having to make lots of sacrifices. With that people should be able to sacrifice much smaller things like money and other resources to help. However, who is and who is not a hero is different. At a point in time someone may be a hero, but if they still did a lot of bad stuff that time, that hero title can go away just like the statue. An example of this to me is someone who was a slave owner could of been considered a hero when his statue was made but not anymore.
40. Drew Ruprich August 30, 2020 at 4:18 pm

    I think that the taking down of statues is right in a sense. To me, the movement is justified by the unfair treatment of people of different skin colors. And there should be some sort of protests involved in this. But I also think that there should be limitations to the movement. People in protests who don’t know their history might just take down some random statue that looks offensive to them in that moment. Knowing the facts is one of the most important things to me and should be for everyone. There will most likely be more statues torn down, and I think, if it’s justified, it can be considered okay. However, this movement will, in time, come to an end. We want to be the ones who make sure the right decisions are made and continue to remember why we’re doing all of this in the first place.

    I agree with the statement that times/people change, and that many things that were okay before aren’t now. But this doesn’t always have to call for violence. Petitions can be made, and signatures can be signed, so the people can get rid of something that has no meaning anymore. Tearing down statues may sometimes prove a point, but it might not be the right decision. Also, there is a time and a place for remembering the bad parts of our history. Having public displays of morally wrong statues is not right. However, everyone should know our history, whether it be good or bad, so it doesn’t repeat itself. For all we know, in another 50-100 years, times could change again, and all our newly built statues could be taken down once more. We must do what we think is right as a society, in the present. This might involve a different future than that of what we see, or involve violence even if it doesn’t have to. But the best thing we can do is learn from it. That’s what history is for. Learning. We should remember our past and learn from that as well. Knowledge will teach us that there is always more than one way to solve a problem.

    Yes, I believe that heroes should have statues if they did something heroic/benefitted an entire community. However, as mentioned in the blog, that community, like the UDC, might not always be a fair-minded/ethical community. Those are special cases where it’s up to the people to decide whether something is right or wrong and whether we should recognize that hero or not.
41. Kasen Korstanje August 30, 2020 at 4:33 pm

    1. I believe that the emphasis on taking down statues is just right, and I also believe that more statues can be torn down. These statues of confederate generals and other historical figures in the same category were not built for the right reasons. The statues cover up an imperative part of our history with a polished Southern ideology. America should be teaching its citizens the proper morales of today. Taking down these statues takes America one step closer to unity. These statues are from times when racism and slavery were supported, and while they stand, so do those beliefs. With their destruction comes a new light, where American citizens can be surrounded with what the United States truly stands for. If anything, I think that these statues should be replaced with better representation of America’s true story, not a refurbished version.
    2. Yes, these statues should be removed because of the changing times, but not necessarily destroyed. Many things change with the times. Trends come and go. The reasoning behind these statues is no longer upheld by Americans. They were built in order to praise people who supported the wrong ideas. In other countries, people have taken down statues of bad political leaders, so America should be able to do so as well. One idea that I have is to take down these statues in question, not destroy them, and save them for teaching purposes. They would make a statement as to what not to believe in. They should be used as a learning tool, not representation of slavery, racism, and other horrors. The statues should not remain in American streets, tarnishing them. By allowing the statues to remain in the street, they’re glorifying a part of our history that shouldn’t be treated that way. The best way to cleanse America of these negative ideals is to get these historical figures off the streets.
    3. Yes, I think we should have statues of our heroes, but only as long as they reflect ideas that are supported by America’s beliefs. There are plenty of heroes whose statues haven’t been torn down, and that’s because they represent a different set of beliefs. Think about Martin Luther King Junior and other vital members of the Civil Rights Movement. Statues of those people are still around because their ideals match those of America. Overall, statues aren’t meant to be bad, but they can carry the wrong message sometimes. A statue of a hero can be built as long as it’s reasoning for being built is moral and reasonable.
42. Kyle Konopka August 30, 2020 at 4:47 pm

    I think that the push to take down these statues is the right thing to do. The statues were constructed as a form of propaganda by the United Daughters of the Confederacy. They are painting racists and criminals as heroes. The longer they stand the more people will think of them as good people. It is our duty as Americans to help educate other citizens and make our country a better place. America is called The Land of the Free, so we should not have statues of people that fought for slavery and discrimination. This is a problem that should have been handled by the states or federal government a long time ago. At this point, the citizens have waited and asked politely for long enough. It is understandable that they are impatient and have taken matters into their own hands.

    I think the statues should be removed. Some things were acceptable a long time ago, but they are not anymore. If we do not take them down, it is the same as saying that their actions are acceptable in this time too. If people truly want to keep them as a part of history they should be kept in museums. There are many museums in our country that serve to teach citizens about the horrible things that have happened here, so that we will not repeat them. Confederate statues could be held in the same museums that we keeps artifacts of slavery and segragation in. The statues themselves are not bad, but the way they are thought of and taught is. The statues and generals should be looked at as a part of history and nothing else. The last thing they should be seen as is heroes.

    I believe that it is fine to construct statues of our ancestors and heroes, but as times and standards change the statues should be treated accordingly. There might be things that we think are fine today, but in 100 years might be looked at as horrible. I think that if that is the case, our artifacts and statues should be recorded but not celebrated. Society is always changing and learning and it is important for everything to change with it. I believe it is important to take record of our history, but it is even more important to learn from it, so we do not make the same mistakes over and over again.
43. Liv Chapman August 30, 2020 at 7:42 pm

    I believe that the emphasis on taking down these statues is just right for now. Statues are put up to honor heroes and people who made a positive impact on history. The majority of the time, the statues that are put up, represent people that made a positive change in the world, but some of the statues that are being taken down, are the ones who represent the bad people. People who were homophobic, racist, and just some terrible people. UDC was not only teaching history incorrectly, they were praising people who owned slaves and thought that slavery was good. All of the United States’ history should be taught the way it happened. There should be no propaganda because in order to avoid all the bad parts of history from repeating, it must be taught exactly how it happened. A lot of the statues were figures of history who, at the time, were viewed as good people. With all that’s going on in the world today, a mass amount of people are starting to realize more of the bad in these figures. I also think that some of these monuments must get torn down to draw more attention to the current movement that we are living through. Lastly, I believe that more statues will continue to be torn down as life goes forward. More attention will be brought to things no one has noticed and that will lead to the tearing down of more monuments. Statues will continue to be brought down until people finally understand that black lives matter.

    This is a difficult question to answer, I believe one may argue that these monuments should stay up for a couple of reasons. First of all, the monuments are to remind us of our history, even though they may represent terrible times, without these monuments we wouldn’t have constant reminders of how far we’ve come. Others may say that some of the statues are disrespectful and honor terrible figures in history. Even though there are parts of history that are shameful and almost unbelievable, we have to accept our history and prevent it from happening again. As time goes on, the world changes, a lot. Along with people’s beliefs and what is labeled as right and wrong. Back when the monuments were first built, I’m sure they were to honor someone, but now a lot of them are just reminders of how terrible times used to be. On the other hand, people may argue that a lot of the statues and monuments are disrespectful and just not acceptable in today’s society. Many people used to believe that African Americans were property. Some view it as trying to “honor” that statement and therefore want the statute to be removed because it’s not acceptable. If these statues continue to be left up, they must be taught exactly how history went down and be taught that the monuments aren’t to honor the past but it is to remind us of how awful times used to be and avoid repeating it.

    Yes, statues are a way to remember people for their great accomplishments. Some of these people have truly changed the world and it would be absurd if we didn’t have statues to remember them. As time goes on, everyone’s views might change and if later in the future, the statues are no longer acceptable then change will be made. Even though monuments of bad people can be torn down, it should not belittle the good people that we have to remember and continue to honor. Many of the statues deserve to be there. A lot of these monuments are people who truly changed the world. For example, there are so many memorials and monuments for veterans and people who fought in the wars. It wouldn’t be fair if we didn’t have some sort of way to honor some of these amazing figures in history.
44. Matthew Fayz August 30, 2020 at 9:01 pm

    I think the emphasis on taking down statues is about right. In America, there are many statues of controversial figures. There are confederate generals and other historical figures that might not be the representation of America that we want. I believe that there are many more statues they should take down because we can’t just take down a few and act like that resolves the issue. We need to take down every last one of the statues representing someone that isn’t part of today’s U.S.A. I personally support the taking down of statues they the people see fit. I think that everyone can have their own opinion on this particular topic, but no matter how anyone will put it, racism needs to end.

    I believe that the statues should be removed. There shouldn’t be any examples of what is no longer acceptable, because if someone who doesn’t know any better sees that, they might start acting like that. Examples of people who don’t know any better would be children, foreign people, and adults that lack the knowledge. If a child saw an example of mistreating a African American person in a statue, it is possible that at school they will act the same. If a foreign person sees a statue possibly discriminating against their culture, then they will feel offended, and possibly threatened. If I saw someone of my ethnicity being disrespected, and or harmed and mistreated, I would not like to stay in that area. When someone sees a statue of a general they might think he fought for our country, but what they might not know is that he could have been a slave owner or just someone who mistreats African american people.

    I believe that we should still remember the statues, but we shouldn’t have them up on display. Statues play a big role in the culture of that area they are in. Statues and monuments in Washington D.C represent a wide variety of good and bad. The bad represents our past and the good represents our future, but in my opinion that is not explained very well. For example the Lincoln memorial is massive and well known, while statues of Martin Luther King Jr. and large but not as known/seen as the Lincoln memorial. We should publicize statues like the one of Martin Luther King Jr. better, and show that some statues don’t always represent good.
45. Ava Gailey August 30, 2020 at 9:40 pm

    1. I think the emphasis on taking down the statues is just right. I believe that the statues celebrating the confederacy do not have the right to stay up because they are supporting the ideology that slavery was a good part of American history, and it is not. These statues celebrate active participants in inherently racist ideas. I believe that all statues of these so-called “heroes” should be taken down. I personally do not want to see statues of people that fought for the right to keep human beings as slaves while I am walking down the street. Statues should be used to shine a light on the good people in history, and the bad people can stay in the textbooks to learn from their mistakes

    2. I think that the statues should be taken down even if times have changed. I understand that some people thought it was acceptable to have these statues built, but the majority of the people that thought this was white folks that lived in the south. At the time, many southern whites believed and endorsed the confederacy’s ideas and thought that these people were heroes, so, therefore, wanted statues of them. But we need to take into account the opinions of POC and northerners at the time. I’m sure that they would have not wanted the statues built if they had a say in it. The white people obviously think that they are heroes because of the UDC. The UDC had these little children watch (what I would say is) borderline propaganda, so of course the white kids would grow up to think that the soldiers in the confederate side of the civil war are heroes. People of color and the northerners didn’t have this twisted side to history, so they were seeing the picture clearer and knew the truth about the war, soldiers, and statues.

    3. Yes, I believe that we should have statues of heroes. In my mind, the participants in the confederacy are not heroes and any statues of them should get taken down. Real heroes are people that help others, fight for what is right, and are overall good people. Statues that have a positive idea behind them should definitely be standing for civilians to see what is the right side of history and to have a positive impact on the community. The confederate statues have ideologies that are outdated in this time, and they are overall negative.
46. Diego McIntyre August 30, 2020 at 10:16 pm

    #1)I believe that in certain cases it is a good idea to take down statues that were built with the intention of glorifying Confederacy and their soldiers because of the racism associated with the group. On the other hand, taking down statues just for the sake of taking down statues like the rioters did with the black soldier’s memorials is a pretty stupid and almost hypocritical decision.

    #2)I really don’t think that glorifying Confederate soldiers is a good thing and if you think that taking down statues will wipe them from history you are very wrong. So I think that it would be a good idea to get rid of Confederate statues because they really don’t serve a purpose and they won’t be “forgotten” because of the internet.
    The statues and monuments should be removed because the main reason that they were put up in the first place was because of the UDC’s attempts to rewrite history to make it seem like the Confederacy was a good thing and that slavery was a happy fun time for everyone involved. I really think that the only way for the statues to stay up is to change the meanings behind why they are up, which given the political climate in the south would be a very difficult task.

    #3)I do believe that it is important to have statues of real heroes who helped people instead of hurting them, such as the monument for MLK, because it glorifies people who made the world a better place for everyone and sets an example for people that heroes like these actually deserve monuments because of their contributions to society. The statues serve as a symbol of hope for citizens from all walks of life whereas the Confederate statues depict racist people who only helped those of their own skin color and hurt anyone who wanted to disband slavery.
    In conclusion, I believe getting rid of statues that glorify racists and give off a terrible example to the younger generation is an amazing idea if we want to help improve our society. I also believe that we could replace those statues with those of America’s real heros such as Frederick Douglass for his work in the abolitionist movement or MLK for his outstanding accomplishments in the civil rights movement.
47. Alexander Moore August 30, 2020 at 10:36 pm

    1. I think the emphasis of taking down statues is just right.I believe statues of slave owners and confederate generals should be taken down. Those statues are displaying social injustice should be torn down right away. It is important to learn from figures of the past having statues to memorialize the figures of the confederacy is wrong. The statues remind African Americans of the injustice and bad things there ancestors had to face in the past. Keeping these statues up would only cause further issues. If it wasn’t for the UDC there wouldn’t be statues honoring people of the confederacy. Taking down those statues helps teach the new generations those people were not good people and stops people from thinking that the confederacy was a good thing.
    2. I think the statues should be taken down to stop honoring people of the confederacy. The statues depict injustice and inequality. The statues are not something that should be looked up to. Even though the statues may have been acceptable in the past they are not acceptable today. To eradicate the cycle of social injustice taking down the statues would be a good first step. We should remember the past and learn from it rather than honor and idolize the bad ideas and figures of the past. I think all the statues showing injustice or inequality should be taken down as a step towards positive change. Leaving the statues up may influence the younger generations to believe these were good people and in the end spreading the false narrative that the confederacy was a good thing
    3. I think we should have statues of people. Remembering heroes and honoring them is a good thing. But making statues that spread a false narrative is not a good thing. Statues should be made for people that had a positive impact on history not negative. If these statues end up leaving a negative footprint in the future they should be torn down. I. But creating statues for people has been a thing for a long time and we should continue it. Statues should be a way of remembering our history. People that fight for what they believe in should be remembered and have a statue made after them. To prevent the spread of false narratives Statues that are no longer accepted should be removed and no longer be honored if they spread something negative in the future. Even if what the statue was made for was accepted in the past.
48. Mori Miller August 30, 2020 at 10:49 pm

    1. I think that the emphasis on taking down statues is just about right, and we could even take down some more. Most of the statues being taken down are monuments to people, and if that person stood for hatred of a certain type of people, they don’t deserve to be celebrated and immortalized as a statue. I think the argument that they are necessary to preserve our American history is ridiculous because we have countless museums, historical artifacts, and primary sources from the entirety of America’s past. I believe that there should be a federal mandate making any form of a confederate statue illegal. It is humiliating that black people in America have to look at and live by a statue memorializing someone who fought to enslave black people only 150 years ago. We live in a different American then we did in the past, and our whole society should be a reflection of that.
    2. I think that just because times have changed and things were acceptable in the past doesn’t mean they still deserve to be celebrated right now. Just because it was acceptable to be racist 200 years ago doesn’t excuse a person’s racism. A statue of a good person in the 1800’s shouldn’t stand if they’re a terrible person now. Especially in the case of people such as Christopher Columbus, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and people of the sort do not deserve to be idolized and memorialized in the way they are today. Columbus was responsible for a genocide of millions of indeginous people, yet still has statues of him, towns named after him, and a national holiday. Washington was a slave owner, so he doesn’t deserve to go down in history as a great man. Jefferson raped a teenage slave and owned hundreds of enslaved people, yet still is immortalized as a good person with lots of statues of him. I don’t think leaving the statues up but teaching about them differently is a good idea because what’s the point of teaching that someone was a bad person then having a 50 foot statue in the middle of town of them.
    3. I personally think there are better ways to memorialize our heroes but I do think there should be some statues for true heroes in history such as MLK, WW2 soldiers, Ghandi, etc. Statues are important ways to immortalize people who had a major positive effect on history.
49. Rachel Mercer August 30, 2020 at 11:28 pm

    I think the emphasis on taking down statues is just about right. These statues have represented times when the United States was damaged and had supported terrible things such as slavery. Taking the statues down shows that, as a country, we have recognized what we have done wrong and are trying to correct it. I don’t think we need to take down more statues, but any statues that represent people fighting against what the constitution states should definitely be considered as statues that should be removed. The people fighting in the confederacy were considered traitors and fought against the constitution. Some people may say these statues help us remember history and should be kept up for the purpose of learning about these people’s flawed beliefs, but I think we should learn about these people in school and in our history books instead of having monuments of people who fought for the losing side. If you think about Disney world, you might think of the statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse, but you don’t ever see a statue of someone doubting Walt Disney and thinking Disney would fail as a company. Not only do you not see statues of those people, you don’t see people commemorating them in the statues and making them look like the good guys.
    Statues that have once been acceptable in community and are not anymore should be removed. These statues should be removed because they still represent the person and what they stood for. Even if this figure is taught differently, the original was meant to represent something bad and not acceptable anymore. Of course we should learn about history so things like this don’t repeat themselves, but to look at a statue of a person who did something unacceptable and to read about someone who did something unacceptable is very different. Both ways you are learning about the person, but the statue just shows that people used to praise their behavior and that might lead to the wrong ideas. The UDC fought to put these statues up because they felt they were right and deserved to be recognized for their bravery. Now we can understand that these statues are of people who believed something that is no longer tolerable.
    I think we should have statues of heroes in our country because they represent what people should look up to and what characteristic a leader or hero might portray. Obviously no leaders in this country have been perfect, but some of them fought for big things such as becoming our own country, ending slavery, and equailty for everyone. They may have had their own flaws, but as long as the statue is commemorating them for what they have done for the good of the people and is not offensive, I think we should allow the statue to stay up in their honor. These statues also promote the positive impact these people had on society.
50. Colin Keane August 30, 2020 at 11:29 pm

    1.I think some statues should stay, and some statues shouldn’t. If the statue has any racism or provokes racism in any way it should be taken down. Even though it tells us about history I dont think it should be their, and or praised. But if it is just a statue of George Washington even though he was a slave owner he was one of the founding fathers of this country. Some people might think different, but that statue with Abraham Lincoln should be taken down 100%. This is because the statue has an African American man and it could be seen as a slave, and even though it was our history and he was setting them free i think the statute should be removed because it has racism in it. There also might be an argument that we are just covering up our history. But we don’t have to do that we can dedicate a museum to it or something else so we don’t just cover it up.

    2. Yes i think some statues should be removed because times have changed, because if they symbolize racism in any way they should be removed. But they don’t have to be removed forever they can be moved to some other place so we can teach about our history, maybe like an African American History Museum. We can change the way they should be taught but the statues that have racism should not be out in the open.

    3. Yes we should have statues of some our heroes just not the ones that promote racism. We need the statues for our history its very important to the U.S, but any statue that supports racism should be moved elsewhere or even destroyed, because people have changed and history has changed and this is not good any more. Like I said in number one if their is a statute of just our founding father George Washington, even though he was a slave owner it does not display or promote racism in any way. Also like a Martin Luther King Jr statue. It is honoring what a great man he was and what he did for the country it should not be moved in any way because he was talking about racism. But in other statues like the Abraham Lincoln one. Although it promotes a great part in history (The Emancipation Proclamation). It isn’t the best because there is a man who could be said as a slave in the picture. So i feel that the statue should either be torn down or moved to another place that can talk about the Emancipation and show its greatness, instead of its downside. Also their are other statues of Abraham Lincoln that do not promote racism, so we wont be removing his only statue. Coming to the conclusion of I think we should keep some statues, and remove others.