Monumental Racism
While the issue has deep roots in American discourse, this year’s countrywide demonstrations
over racial and civil inequality sparked by the police killing of George Floyd have
highlighted the ongoing struggle over the meaning and legacy of these public monuments.
Central to this discussion is whether these statues—often dedicated to confederate and colonial leaders—serve to highlight the problems of the past or whether they glorify and reinforce cultural supremacy that has marginalized people of color. Similarly, other monuments have been criticized for their depiction of people of color and have been charged with distorting the past.