Not sure whether this will help or hurt, but it’s certainly a thing…
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THAT is freakin beautiful. What an amazing change from the racist bullshit they tolerated when I lived there 25 years ago.
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I don’t know. I’m not a fan of massed gun-nuts regardless of their goals.
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I think what worries me is that it’s sure to be used to fuel some racist bullshit. I just hope that bullshit will continue to be drowned out.
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well, if whitey is entitled to stomp around with firearms then so is everybody else
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I’m sad I missed it… that’s so close to my house.
Maybe some whites need to be scared shitless for once.
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Of course, but no one should.
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The white power guys are all packing. They used to terrify me when I was walking around Stone Mountain. Always was glad I didn’t look Jewish even if I am.
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Now that construction crews have arrived on campus to move the white marble figure, student leaders are demanding that the project be halted after learning that university administrators plan to spend more than $1.1 million in private funds to renovate the cemetery and erect headstones for the Confederate dead, install security cameras and shine new lighting on the memorial.
[…]
In addition to adding headstones for the Confederate soldiers — a move that critics say is historically inaccurate as the exact number and names of soldiers buried is unknown — the university submitted artist renderings that show a newly laid path leading up to the contentious statue, which would be surrounded by manicured landscaping and in-ground lighting.
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Even if the statue was to someone deserving, why go to all the fuss? I generally like finding public art pieces in obscure corners of public parks. It can be an interesting diversion to see e.g. a scientific figure in a clearing. I don’t like the visitor centers, the parking, the special lighting, and the admissions fees. If people want to use a park to play frisbee, or observe the butterflies, or fly a kite, or play Pokemon-- that’s great. Erecting a giant statue, with security guards and lighting and rededication repurposes the public’s greenspace for something that is at best, only of secondary importance. And if the statue honors someone awful-- that’s salt in the wound.
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God forbid they should spend the money on scholarships.
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Some actual de-nazifying:
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Journal of the Corona Year
7/4 — an attempted de-Nazification
I was looking for a good protest to go to on the 4th of July. There was talk of major operations planned.
There was a march going up Fulton Street in Brooklyn that looked promising. But the organizers were more militant than I would have preferred — advocating guns among other things. They requested that everyone come wearing either black, red or green. That’s a problem. I don’t have any black, red or green clothing. And even if I did, I would not wear it on a sunny, 90 degree day. Also I would look like a poseur.
So I looked into what was happening in Manhattan. I didn’t want to travel that far, but that’s where most of the activity has been. There was one march starting at Columbus Circle and ending a Trump Tower. Tempting, but it looked like it was asking for trouble. And then there was a rally at Foley Square. That too looked like it was asking for trouble.
I found a march that sounded appealing. It was scheduled to start at 2:00 in Washington Square and proceed downtown. A protest march starting from Washington Square. That’s classic New York.
I got there about 20 minutes early. I expected a massive turnout. The park was quite empty. That was good in a way — I beat the rush, and people were taking social distancing seriously.
Eventually at 2:00 someone with a megaphone started “making some noise.” A small group of people gathered around him. Amid the various charts he was leading, he mentioned that the march would not start until 3:00. They were waiting for another group to arrive.
I decided to see what was happening at Union Square. Surely something was happening there. And if not, I would still have time to get back by 3:00.
Sure enough, there was an event at Union Square. A larger crowd. A livelier speaker. By about 2:30, they were done talking and ready to start walking. They walked down to 14th Street, then over to 5th Avenue. This was energizing. We were making a highly-visible statement. We got positive responses from people on the sidewalks.
I soon realized we were heading to Washington Square. I had joined-up with the group they were waiting for.
By 2:50, Charles Atlas watched as we entered Washington Square under the arch. At that point, the speeches resumed. So the event turned into a rally. We were standing in the sun, listening to people tell us why we came. Thank you for telling me why I’m here. I already know why I’m here. That’s why I’m here.
A march through the streets makes a statement. Making an angry speech in Washington Square is just background noise.
One of the speakers mentioned that a third group would be arriving and we would be waiting for them. If I had known the actual march would not be starting until almost 4:00, I could have washed my floors before I came.
I decided to give them until 3:30. If nothing happened I would fade away at that time. And that’s what I ended up doing.
On the whole, I feel like I wasted my Saturday.
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Knowing the Seattle area like I do, that’s honestly not soooo unusual.
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About bloody time!
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