After the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, there has been
a rash of protests against Confederate monuments all over the country. Today, there was one in my hometown of Huntsville, Alabama.
A group of 150 protesters showed up at the Madison County Courthouse to protest the Confederate statue that is on the Courthouse steps.
There were about 20 counter-protesters there who showed up with Confederate flags.
The protesters do have a permit to do so. The group was shouting things such as “Tear it down!” and “Racists go home!”
This is the demonstrators holding signs. Others hold flags in the background @whnt pic.twitter.com/JbsPy92nJn
— Kristen Conner WHNT (@KConnerWHNT) August 19, 2017
The monument has been there since 1905. These protesters would like to see it taken down. Some say they would be okay with seeing it in a museum.
The police separated any counter-protesters who got too rowdy.
A speaker, who only identified himself as “Dave,” said:
“We have to break this racism before we get anywhere. This is a divide and conquer strategy by the white aristocracy. Right wing power depends on this fairy tale view of history. Once we get this right, the whole house of cards comes down. (Today) is a good start.”
One counter-protester said:
“They have the right to protest. They don’t have a right to take away history.”
The Facebook event read:
“In interest of solidarity, as well as opposition to white supremacy and fascism, North Alabama DSA, the Tennessee Valley Progressive Alliance and (Standing Up for Racial Justice-Huntsville) are calling upon its membership and any allies against white supremacy in the Huntsville area to come together in protest for the removal of Huntsville’s Confederate monument.”
The protesters were encourage to bring signs. They were also told to follow all traffic laws and to not give themselves any reason to be arrested. The Facebook post also said:
“If there are counter protesters or hecklers of some sort, ignore them the best that you can — or take them to the side and have a one-on-one conversation so that they do not disrupt the speaker and the overall demonstration.”
Here is a news clip about the fight to remove Confederate statues:
Featured image via Twitter.
