17th August 2017, 10:08 PM
Yeah, I agree. It's great that the statues are being removed, but "destroy them all" is not a good instinct. You're right that museums need to put them in an accurate historical context, though... I somehow doubt a lot of the places that would be taking them would do so, sadly enough.
But thinking about it now, my idea probably would be this: replace those statues of Lee and such in public squares with statues of slavery (and continued racial oppression)'s victims. That way you still remember that the war happened, but you do not honor evil anymore. Leave example statues of Confederate generals in historical societies and battlefield monuments. There needs to be some kind of public memory that the Civil War happened, but it should be tied to the continuing struggle against the kind of oppression that led to the war, not to glorifying people fighting for one of the worst things anyone has ever fought for.
But thinking about it now, my idea probably would be this: replace those statues of Lee and such in public squares with statues of slavery (and continued racial oppression)'s victims. That way you still remember that the war happened, but you do not honor evil anymore. Leave example statues of Confederate generals in historical societies and battlefield monuments. There needs to be some kind of public memory that the Civil War happened, but it should be tied to the continuing struggle against the kind of oppression that led to the war, not to glorifying people fighting for one of the worst things anyone has ever fought for.