Florida is taking steps to protect its monuments and memorials from vandalism after two bills have been introduced that will ensure those who deface them face harsher penalties.
Both bills would also ban the placement of specified objects such as signs, on or next to a memorial.
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Monuments and memorials by nature long have stood, quite literally, in the public square. But within a few short years, radicalized Americans have turned on these taciturn forebears like Moses on the golden calf.
The year 2020 witnessed great anguish on this subject among part of the U.S. population. Realizing that our nation was dotted with monuments commemorating sinful men rather than angels, it was imperative for these iconoclasts that the likenesses of bronze and marble be cast down from their pedestals.
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Three bills filed in the General Assembly seek to preserve, protect and properly display historic relics, artifacts and memorials primarily related to the Confederate States of America and Tennessee’s involvement during the War Between the States.
All three bills are sponsored in the state Senate by State Senator Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma) and in the state House by State Representative Terri Lynn Weaver (R-Lancaster) on behalf of the Sons of Confederate Veterans’ organization.
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Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) urged Gov. Bill Lee to remove a bust of Nathan Bedford Forrest from the State Capitol and rename a state park that bears his name.
In a letter sent to Lee Monday, Cohen asked the Republican governor to “demonstrate leadership on an issue that causes so much pain in the Black community in Tennessee.”
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President Donald Trump said Tuesday he’ll issue an executive order to protect monuments that are coming under new scrutiny as America wrestles with racism during the unrest sparked by the police killing of George Floyd.
Trump has been clear that he opposes the removal of monuments of leaders of the Confederacy or other distasteful aspects of American history.
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Taylor Swift called on Tennessee leaders Friday to remove monuments “that celebrate racist historical figures who did evil things.”
“Edward Carmack and Nathan Bedford Forrest were despicable figures in our state history and should be treated as such,” Swift said in a statement posted on Twitter Friday.
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A DFL lawmaker revealed on Twitter this week that she’s “tried a bunch of times” to get a portrait of President Abraham Lincoln removed from the Minnesota House chamber.
State Rep. Mary Kunesh-Podein (DFL-New Brighton) said it’s “hard to look at” House Speaker Melissa Hortman (DFL-Brooklyn Park) when she’s “standing in front of Lincoln.”
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The statue of the unnamed Confederate soldier has stood since 1909 in front of the courthouse in Louisiana’s East Feliciana Parish, hands resting on his rifle looking down on the flow of lawyers, jurors and defendants going into the white columned building. Ronnie Anderson, an African-American man charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, illegal possession of a stolen firearm, and speeding, was one such defendant and the statue gave him cause for concern. “It’s just intimidating to walk into a courthouse that’s supposed to be a place of equality, fair justice and to see this monument that made me feel like … I don’t stand a chance,” Anderson said. Anderson wants his case to be moved to another parish without such a memorial; his motion to change venue argues he can’t get a fair trial in the same place where a “symbol of oppression and racial intolerance” stands. Confederate flags and monuments – long a part of the Southern landscape – have come under renewed scrutiny following the 2015 shooting by Dylann Roof of nine black churchgoers in South Carolina and the 2017 deadly white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. Supporters say the statues are a…
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A bill scheduled to be heard in the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee Tuesday would make it a felony for a member of a local governmental body to vote in conflict with state or federal laws on immigration or historical memorials. House Bill 2552 sponsored by Representative Dawn White (R-Murfreesboro) creates a Class E felony when an ordinance or resolution that expressly conflicts with state or federal law relative to immigration or historical memorials is knowingly voted on by a member of a city or county legislative body. The crime would be punishable by fine only. However, as with all felony convictions by a public official, the violator would be subject to removal from office. If passed, this bill would directly combat the issue of rogue local governments that seek to create sanctuary cities or removing historical monuments as has been seen in the cities of Nashville and Memphis over the past year. Regarding the bill, Rep. White told The Tennessee Star, “The simple fact is, in America, no one should be able to openly disregard our laws without consequences.” Elaborating on recent events within the state of Tennessee, Rep. White continued, If a local official violates our laws against…
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There is an old adage that “what is done in darkness will come to light.” City officials in Memphis who concocted a secret scheme to “sell” a couple of public parks for $1000 each in order to evade state law prohibiting removal of statues and monuments without proper approval may soon learn the truth of that saying. As soon as they “sold” the parks, two monuments to Nathan Bedford Forrest and Jefferson Davis were quickly removed by the “new private owners” in the dark of night. More facts are coming to light, and it is increasingly clear that the scam was carefully orchestrated by the Mayor and local political activists to skirt the clear intent of the law. If it was such a good idea, why was it done secretly and without public input and debate? Sadly, this is not the first (nor likely the last) time that Memphis has sought to avoid the rule of law in order to “do whatever they want to do.” From creating a sanctuary city in violation of state law to removing statues and monuments in violation of state law, Memphis is following a consistent pattern of creating some sort of “laws we don’t…
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The hasty removal of two Confederate monuments Wednesday overnight has sparked a number of questions into the specifics of the transaction between Memphis city officials and the virtually unknown non-profit corporation that bought the properties, called “Memphis Greenspace.” Shelby County Commission member Van Turner held a press conference Thursday to begin to answer those questions, beginning with the fact that he is the director of “Memphis Greenspace.” WREG News Channel 3 was in Memphis to cover the presser: Memphis Greenspace, the nonprofit group that purchased two controversial city parks Wednesday, announced plans for recently purchased public parks after the removal of two Confederate statues during a press conference Thursday morning. Memphis Greenspace plans to renovate the parks so they can be a safe place for children and more accessible to the public. Van Turner, the director of the non-profit organization and a Shelby County commissioner, led the press conference. He addressed critics of the purchase during the press conference. “This is not a shady deal. It’s a legal deal,” he said. “I presented this solution to Bruce McMullen, the city attorney for the city of Memphis, and he has consistently been an advocate for the removal of these statues legally.”…
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It’s the education, stupid. That, in a nutshell, is a major reason why America’s monuments and national symbols are being torn down, removed, relocated and otherwise blotted from the public square. If students in America’s public schools were properly taught the foundation of this country – the roots that made it great, the causes that both…
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On Monday night a group of predominantly left-wing protesters tore down a monument to Confederate veterans in Durham, North Carolina. The vandals claimed they were taking a stand against a symbol of evil. But while radical leftists claim that Confederate monuments must be removed because they allegedly represent and promote hatred, their apparent comfort with and…
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