NAACP: Let's 'Sand Blast' Confederate Carvings Off Georgia Mountain

[DonViejo]

Source: TPM

Another Confederate monument in the South is under fire, but removing it will require more than just an act of Georgia state legislature.

The Atlanta chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People called Monday for the removal of the 90- by 190-foot carving of three Confederate leaders, Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson, from the side of Stone Mountain, television station WSB reported Tuesday.

“Those guys need to go. They can be sand-blasted off, or somebody could carefully remove a slab of that and auction it off to the highest bidder," NAACP Atlanta branch President Richard Rose told WSB.

Stone Mountain Park is a state park of Georgia about 30 minutes outside Atlanta and the sculpture in question is part of what's described as the "largest high relief sculpture in the world." The sculpture was dedicated by Vice President Spiro Agnew in 1970 and finished in 1972.

-snip-



Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/naacp-stone-mountain-confederate-removal

[Walk away]

1. Maybe we should have them blow the whole thing up...

Don't Rednecks love to blow shit up?!?

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

2. I'd donate to a fund to pay for that.

Either the sandblasting or the blowing up.

[Walk away]

65. I don't think it will cost us anything...

These folks will probably bring their own dynamite!

[randys1]

26. My first thought, exactly. +200000000000000000

[Snow Leopard]

3. Call ISIS or Al Quaeda

they have practice with things like this.

:rolleyes:

[LanternWaste]

17. They also have practice with keeping free people bonded.

They also have practice with keeping free people bonded. So it seems it's a win-win situation for referencing ISIS in this context...

[truthisfreedom]

4. Fire a tank at it.

[snooper2]

5. looks like somebody hasn't used a sandblaster before LOL

The media alone would cost 100's of thousands for a project like that


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[jmowreader]

58. You wouldn't buy it in 50-pound bags for a project like that

I believe it's a bit cheaper if you buy 21 tons of it at a time, but it'd still take a cubic shitload of media to sandblast that carving off.

[Sunlei]

6. No, thats art unless some Corp wants to pay the state billions to redo stone mountian w/ Corp logo

[fbc]

7. If it was really old, I'd say leave it, as a part of history

But the thing was finished in 1972. The only history it represents is southern white anger over civil rights.

[oasis]

50. 19 freakin' 72 !!

[Culver Shuttle]

8. Mount Rushmore -- Two of them owned slaves. n/t

[Nye Bevan]

62. How much work would it be to reconfigure George Washington into John Adams? (nt)

[WinkyDink]

9. Now it's getting ridiculous. We can't "sandblast" history. Raising a flag has profound symbolism, so

its removal FROM GOVERNMENT GROUNDS also is profound.

But let that be that.

[JI7]

11. except a lot of these things were done to oppose civil rights

And intimidate minorities.

[WinkyDink]

37. Operative word's being "were."

[Igel]

12. Dispose of all reminders of the South from before 1877.

That way nobody can be offended at how they're portrayed, nobody can be offended by symbols.

But it would have to be everything, from those offensive plantation houses to the outbuildings associated with them, monuments to Union and Confederate dead, to leaders of both sides. I mean, look at Roof--he touted the Confederate flag, and to him those plantation "outbuildings" were a sign of how things should be. Both were important to him; he drew inspiration from both.

Somehow, I think people will suddenly be less "anti" and more "pro" the things they think matter--keeping the history and message they want rather than painting over anything they find offensive and which detracts from their message.

[randys1]

27. Not plantations, concentration camps.

Why both sides?

Were both sides in favor of owning human beings?

[former9thward]

47. Lincoln did not care one way or the other.

My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union; and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union.

http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/greeley.htm

[Calista241]

21. I would agree. A giant carving in the side of a mountain is art.

We're not ISIS here.

And I've been to Stone Mountain a bunch have of times. There is a giant American flag flying on top of the mountain.

[randys1]

28. The carving isnt the point, the content is.

[Calista241]

31. The Pharaohs in Egypt enslaved millions, including the Jews.

Yet, somehow their tombs are considered one of the great wonders of the world, and millions of tourists travel there each year to see them.

Stone Mountain is no different.

[randys1]

32. You sure about that enslaved comment? Do you want to do some research first?

(I realize now the poster didnt claim built pyramids, but I am pretty sure someone did just the other day)

[Calista241]

34. Are you trying to convince me that Egypt had no slaves?

A simple google search will show you the errors of your ways.

The fact that Egyptian slaves might have been slightly better off than their counterparts elsewhere doesn't change the fact that they were slaves.

Anyway, back on topic.

[randys1]

35. Dear god, are you the same person that made this claim the other day and had HUNDREDS

of people correct you?

I see what you did this time, you didnt erroneously claim they built the pyramids

very clever

If that wasnt you, I apologize

But your comments here are very similar

[Calista241]

39. Slaves labor didn't build the carving on Stone Mountain either.

[randys1]

40. I will take that as a yes you are the same person who said that elsewhere

[Calista241]

41. Eh. i've never read the world pharaoh on this site before today, so i doubt it.

[Yupster]

46. The Palmyrans had slaves too

Maybe it's best ISIS destroys all their stuff too.

[tymorial]

52. Shh. you're making sense.

[MynameisBlarney]

10. Cut it into chunks and haul it off to some museum

While I'm sure it would feel good to destroy it, that might be counterproductive.
Preserving it in a museum as part of the continuing Civil Rights struggle might do more to further educate future generations about how deeply the roots of oppression and hate go.

[greymattermom]

13. leave it

and put a huge American flag on top of the mountain

[Angry Dragon]

14. I agree

[rtracey]

15. I agree

I'm sorry, but as an artist by trade, hearing that people in the US wants to destroy artworks such as carvings and statues such as these does remind me of ISIS destroying the priceless art objects and carvings in Iraq, Syria, etc.... We as a civilized people can get our views across by means other then destroying art.

Taking out the Carvings on Stone Mountain will only cause more aggravation.

[Abouttime]

20. It needs to be torn out, destroyed

It's not art it's hate speech. It could be taken out in short order with pneumatic chisels. All that would be left is a pile of debris at the bottom.
I'd even go as far to employ underprivileged black youth from Atlanta to do the job. It could be done next summer and finished right before the election, the symbolism would do more to help us in the south than the mult-millions the Koch brother will be spending to steal the election for the pukes. Can you imagine the damage done to the eventual Republican candidate when they are forced to defend this disgusting hate speech? This issue alone could motivate millions of black voters to defeat the pukes in a landslide.

[rtracey]

23. hmmmmm

Well good luck, because Stone Mountain is owned by the state of Georgia, “Stone Mountain is preserved by state law as a Confederate memorial. The law that changed the flag to our current state flag also expressly prohibited changes at Stone Mountain Park. Some on both sides of these issues have said that these Confederate symbols belong in a museum. Here in Georgia, Stone Mountain Park serves that purpose.”

Where does it stop. Do we now take all the Civil war battlefields and just pave over them? Maybe take Gettysburg and put up a Walmart Distribution Center right where Pickett's Charge happened... How about a UPS where Bull Run took place?

[Major Nikon]

45. In other words the legal protection of Stone Mountain was a concession...

to the removal of the other traitorous symbol of hate.

Not surprisingly the proponents of hate aren't going to give up their symbol without a lot of kicking and screaming.

Fuck them and the horse Lee rode in on.

[randys1]

33. It needs to be destroyed just like we destroyed the traitors that it is in celebration of

[jtuck004]

16. With a big arrow pointing to the flag that says "Won". n/t

[CTyankee]

29. I agree. And also, make sure that future generations of Americans learn that the

Civil War was fought over the issue of slavery, not some vague bullshit "heritage."

It would be nice to have a plaque near the carving that encapsulates that sentiment and says so succinctly. The people carved in the stone should be identified as people who fought for the concept of the enslavement of black people and decided to "secede." We fought them over the legitimacy of their claim that they could do so. We won. They lost. Our idea won over their idea. That is where the whole legitimacy of the argument should be centered...

[DrDan]

30. There already is

[WhoWoodaKnew]

42. Yep

[KamaAina]

66. There's already one there

[LanternWaste]

18. I think simply adding another statue adjacent to the original would assist everyone

I think simply adding another statue adjacent to the original would assist everyone in realizing what the stature both celebrates and represents...

[Hoyt]

55. Exactly. Maybe add a modern one too showing governors preventing people from entering universities.

The work in your post is powerful.

[NCjack]

19. Engrave a title under the cravings that says "CIVIL WAR LOSERS -- 1865" /nt

[IthinkThereforeIAM]

25. That...

... one!

[d_legendary1]

22. How about blowing it up and selling the pieces

as a collector's item? That way they can do away with it and have money to recoup the loss for demoliting it. Might even make a profit off of it.

[awoke_in_2003]

24. Re-sculpt it

To look like Sherman and Grant.

[Third Doctor]

36. LOL!!

I would love to see that. Have it done in the guise of maintenance. When its done light it up at night accompanied with a fire works display! It would be great! Add Lincoln to it too!

[WinkyDink]

38. See, it's this kind of thinking that gets people riled up about Columbus Day.

[Xolodno]

43. Let's go ahead and bulldoze Auschwitz...

...while were at it as it represents horrible atrocities.

There are statues and monuments of Stalin, Hitler, etc. Should they be destroyed? No. That makes us no better than they were.

It needs to remain as a reminder of the wrong choices of the past. Even if, some relish the wrong choices. Destroying, only makes them even bigger martyr's and rouses more. Monuments need not be all about national pride, but also shame. People are flawed, and past figures need to be recognized as flawed people, not deified. That's one of the problems of the Repubs right now, too many of them deify past leaders and ignore the flaws. Again, destroying such monuments, only deifies said leader and erases their flaws and atrocities.

[yurbud]

44. just paint their uniforms blue

[Charlie Brown]

48. n/t

Last edited Wed Jul 15, 2015, 01:45 AM - Edit history (1)

[YOHABLO]

49. Perhaps a compromise would be to erect a monument in the park to MLK and the Civil Rights movement.

A sort of "that was then, this is now" recognition of where we have evolved as a country, as people who live in the South.

[tymorial]

51. Someone is going to lose a beach if they try to sandblast that thing

Actually more like a lot of beaches. Its gigantic. Better to do it with dynamite.

[blackspade]

53. A monument of racists, built by racists.

[Yo_Mama]

54. And blow up the Washington Monument while we're at it??

Where does this end?

http://www.nps.gov/wamo/index.htm

Raze Monticello to the ground??

Why not march on Princeton University and demand that they rename the Woodrow Wilson School???
https://wws.princeton.edu/about-wws
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_segregation.html

[Nye Bevan]

61. And how would Native Americans feel if we don't demolish every statue of Columbus? (nt)

[Alkene]

56. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy

[840high]

57. Stupid.

[Telcontar]

59. Fuck that, fuck the NAACP, fuck anyone who supports this

Utter bullshit.

Just raise the black flag of ISIS and be done with it already

[Nye Bevan]

60. .

[Recursion]

63. It's the largest bas relief sculpture in the world

I'd rather not see it sandblasted, though I'd donate to a drive to put an even bigger sculpture of MLK on the other side of the mountain.

[melm00se]

64. History (whether you like it or not)

should not be edited/redacted/censored because of someone's (or someones') sensibilities are negatively impacted.

ISIS has been mentioned up thread, I'll mention the Soviets next:

Now you see Nikolai Yezhov:


Now you don't:


Now you see Trotsky:


Now you don't


Just because something upsets you does not mean that you can (should) expunge those facts and relics from history.

Cheering and agreeing with extremist comments like this only marginalizes the "agreers" and destroys any credibility that might exist.

[The Second Stone]

67. Let's put plaques in that tell the truth about the causes of secession, and the war, and exactly

the history of racism and revisionism in history that made this monument a reality.