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Hundreds of UNC faculty members urge officials not to restore Silent Sam statue to its original loca
Source: Washington Post
Hundreds of UNC faculty members urge officials not to restore Silent Sam statue to its original location
By Susan Svrluga
September 5 at 11:21 PM
Hundreds of University of North Carolina faculty members sent a letter Wednesday to school officials urging them not to return to its original location a Confederate statue toppled by protesters.
Last month, protesters in Chapel Hill took down a memorial known as Silent Sam, but school officials have not said what will happen to it. On Friday, UNC's chancellor, Carol Folt, said the statue did not belong “at the front door” of the university, and 450 professors expressed their support for her words Wednesday.
"We, the undersigned faculty, commend as an important first step Chancellor Folt’s August 31, 2018 statement that the Confederate monument does not belong 'at the front door of a safe, welcoming, proudly public research university,'” they wrote.
"We are determined to have a strong voice in the decision about the disposition of the monument. We are also encouraged by recent statements by clergy and business leaders in Chapel Hill that make clear their unequivocal opposition to the reinstallation of the statue in its former location. The civic, economic, emotional, and cultural well-being of our community, as well as the university’s educational mission, will suffer continued damage by the presence of the monument on McCorkle Place,” the letter said.
James Moeser, chancellor emeritus, was one of the signatories. Moeser did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday afternoon.
-snip-
By Susan Svrluga
September 5 at 11:21 PM
Hundreds of University of North Carolina faculty members sent a letter Wednesday to school officials urging them not to return to its original location a Confederate statue toppled by protesters.
Last month, protesters in Chapel Hill took down a memorial known as Silent Sam, but school officials have not said what will happen to it. On Friday, UNC's chancellor, Carol Folt, said the statue did not belong “at the front door” of the university, and 450 professors expressed their support for her words Wednesday.
"We, the undersigned faculty, commend as an important first step Chancellor Folt’s August 31, 2018 statement that the Confederate monument does not belong 'at the front door of a safe, welcoming, proudly public research university,'” they wrote.
"We are determined to have a strong voice in the decision about the disposition of the monument. We are also encouraged by recent statements by clergy and business leaders in Chapel Hill that make clear their unequivocal opposition to the reinstallation of the statue in its former location. The civic, economic, emotional, and cultural well-being of our community, as well as the university’s educational mission, will suffer continued damage by the presence of the monument on McCorkle Place,” the letter said.
James Moeser, chancellor emeritus, was one of the signatories. Moeser did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday afternoon.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2018/09/06/hundreds-unc-faculty-members-urge-officials-not-restore-silent-sam-statue-its-original-location/