O Boston, how far we've fallen.
"The Shot Heard 'Round The World," was fired just miles away in the fields of Lexington and Conord.
And now you are just another bed of rebellion, this time helping undo all that your forefathers fought for.
CNN confirms that demands in Boston to remove a replica of "The Emancipation Statue," featuring President Lincoln and freed slave, have won the day:
A statue in a Boston park depicting a formerly enslaved man kneeling before President Abraham Lincoln will be removed, according to city officials.
After two public hearings, the Boston Art Commission voted to remove the Emancipation Group, a statue installed in 1879 in Boston's Park Square, according to a statement announcing the removal.
The statue is a replica of one in Washington, DC, and has been controversial since its installation for the depiction of the freed slave. The statue features Archer Alexander, a Black man who "assisted the Union Army, escaped slavery, and was recaptured under the Fugitive Slave Act," the statement says.
The vote follows a nationwide movement calling for the removal of monuments that celebrate the Confederacy or viewed as racist."
A favor?!
Is that etched into the bronze somewhere??
Nobody has ever viewed Lincoln's emancipation of the slaves as a favor-a favor which i might add, nearly ripped the country in two forever.
Who risks the unity and peace of entire land mass to do someone a favor.
Over half a million Americans fought to the death to determine the success of this so called favor.
That reaction is in response to Democratic Mayor Marty Walsh's comments following the announcement of the statue's removal.
Local Boston 25 News covered what the mayor had to say:
“As we continue our work to make Boston a more equitable and just city, it’s important that we look at the stories being told by the public art in all of our neighborhoods,” Mayor Marty Walsh said in a statement supporting the commission’s decision. “After engaging in a public process, it’s clear that residents and visitors to Boston have been uncomfortable with this statue, and its reductive representation of the Black man’s role in the abolitionist movement,” Walsh said."
WBUR gave a little more context on the debates surrounding the statue at the local level in the city:
All board members agreed on giving more context, education, and transparency to the sculpture’s history and future. The board said it did not plan to remove the piece of art completely from the city’s collection. Removal could mean loaning it to a museum or putting it into storage.
The commission said it would plan to hold a public event to “acknowledge the statue’s history and inform the public.”
During public comment, many local residents said the sculpture made them uncomfortable, while others said they felt it reinforced a racist and paternalistic view of Black people.
In her closing remarks, commission member and artist Ekua Holmes said, “What I heard today is that it hurts to look at this piece. And I feel like on the Boston landscape we should not have works that bring shame to any group of people that are citizens, not just of Boston, but of the United States."
The orginal monument in DC, also a liberal target, was first commissioned by freed slaves following the end of the Civil War.
And for 141 years it has stood in Boston, as an homage to that monument freed slaves erected in our nation's capitol.
Understanding historical context is something completely absent in the debates of today.
The optimist sees a former slave, head up, rising from the ashes of his bondage.
The cynic sees nothing but a racist tribute in a racist nation.
In reality, Lincoln did not free the slaves alone, like many opponents repeat ad nauseum. He did it with the help and lives of hundreds of thousands men, black and white.
These memorials are meant to honor the gravity of his courage to pursue justice and the ascension of the oppressed into equal citizens.
Join the conversation!
Please share your thoughts about this article below. We value your opinions, and would love to see you add to the discussion!