Charleston Statue Spray-Painted With ‘Black Lives Matter’ Inspires Attack On Baltimore Confederate Memorial
A Charleston statue spray-painted with graffiti citing the Black Lives Matter movement has already inspired copycat artists. Authorities said they found a Baltimore statue defaced in almost exactly the same manner, and it has become clear that some are specifically targeting Confederate memorials across the United States.
In a related report by the Inquisitr, South Carolina’s governor is making it clear that the Confederate flag will be coming down.
The Black Lives Matter movement had the Charleston statue spray-painted since it was a memorial for the Confederate soldiers who defended Charleston during the Civil War, and bright red paint left the clear message, “This is the problem. #Racist.” Although the act of vandalism was in response to the actions of Dylann Storm Roof, this is not the first time in recent memory that Confederate memorials have come under attack. A Jefferson Davis statue was attacked due to its “ties to slavery” in the United States, and at the time, the Sons of Confederate Veterans claimed the statue honored the nation’s diversity.
“I don’t think we’re trying to put up stuff just to put up stuff,” said Marshall Davis, spokesman for the Sons of Confederate Veterans in Texas. “We don’t want to impede anyone else from honoring their heroes. We would like to honor our heroes with the same consideration, tolerance, and diversity.”
Apparently, the Black Lives Matter movement disagrees, and someone had a Baltimore statue painted with their name. The Confederate statue stands in Bolton Hill, and it was originally built in 1903 by the Maryland Daughters of the Confederacy. The graffiti covers over words which say, “To The Soldiers and Sailors of Maryland in the Service of the Confederate States of America, 1861-1865.”
A Baltimore statue’s message honoring #Confederate soldiers has been written over. #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/FKqNSpC6ma
— Kevin Rector (@RectorSun) June 22, 2015
According to the Baltimore Sun, Aida Ramirez, a 20-year-old student at the Maryland Institute College of Art, happens to be both Hispanic and a member of the Daughters of the Confederacy. Thanks to a scholarship from the Confederate group, she is able to go to college, so seeing the Baltimore statue defaced in such a manner brings up mixed feelings.
“I understand its historical significance but I definitely think that it should be left in the past,” she said, explaining how the Confederate flag sometimes left her feeling uncomfortable. “Being a person of color and a Daughter of the Confederacy is weird.”
Kristen Bowden, 42, also used to view the Confederate flag and other Confederate memorials as a “symbol of state rights,” but now she says “it’s more a symbol of hate.” But Confederate groups do not believe the memorials, banners, or symbols should be conflated with the actions of Dylann Storm Roof.
“Do not associate the cowardly actions of a racist to our Confederate Banner,” South Carolina Commander of the Sons of Confederate Veterans Leland Summers said in a statement, according to ABC News. “There is absolutely no link between The Charleston Massacre and The Confederate Memorial Banner. Don’t try to create one.”
What do you think?
[Image via Twitter]
