Confederate Monuments in North Carolina Will Receive Slavery Context

The decision comes after Governor Roy Cooper advocated for the removal of the monuments.

A Confederate flag supporter
A Confederate flag supporter arrives at the South Carolina Statehouse on July 10, 2017 in Columbia, South Carolina. To mark the two year anniversary of the removal of the Confederate battle flag from statehouse grounds, demonstrators erected a pole and flew a replica for several hours at its former location. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
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Instead of moving three Confederate monuments from North Carolina’s capital, the state’s historical commission has decided to add historical context about slavery and the Civil Rights movement to them, the Associated Press is reporting.

“The commission voted 10-1 to reinterpret the three monuments with adjacent signs about “the consequences of slavery” and the “subsequent oppressive subjugation of African American people,”” AP reports.

The commission also requested that a monument that honors African Americans be added.

“I believe the monuments need to tell the truth and based upon the law that we have today I do not think we can move them,” Sameul Dixon, a lawyer and member of the committee that recommended the context. “But I think we can … tell a better story and tell a full and inclusive story.”

The move comes just days after students toppled the Confederate-era statue “Silent Sam” on UNC’s campus.

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