Manatee Commission should swiftly relocate Confederate monument

Open letter to Manatee County Commission:

I urge that you remove and relocate the Monument to the Confederacy that stands as a symbol of oppression, division and hate in front of the Manatee County Historic Courthouse in Bradenton.

According to the Clerk of Court website, this monument was not part of the original Courthouse, but was added many years after the Civil War was lost, by the United Daughters of the Confederacy. It memorializes and glorifies a war that was fought to keep black human beings enslaved (contrary to the words of the Declaration of Independence which proclaim that “all men are created equal”). Symbols on the monument have been adopted by white supremacist organizations (including an active one in Manatee County’s Lakewood Ranch - the White Nationalist American Freedom Party) that some have classified as domestic terror organizations. These groups have been increasingly emboldened.

This expression of hatred, racism, bigotry and oppression has no place on government property, much less outside a courthouse (where one should expect justice to be served).

When I first moved to Manatee County in 1971, I was horrified to see a drinking fountain with a placard reading “COLORED.” Such signage was, at one time, posted at the courthouse. Should we honor our “history” by keeping those as well?

Even the local chapter of the Daughters of the Confederacy wants the memorial moved, and it should be moved to a museum where it can be used as an educational tool about our country’s past.

I look forward to the swift resolution of this matter.

This story was originally published August 21, 2017 at 3:41 PM with the headline "Manatee Commission should swiftly relocate Confederate monument."