Name:   Talullahhound - Subject:   Riot in Charlottesville Date:   8/12/2017 1:37:42 PM

The governor of Virginia just declared a state of emergency and Police declared "unlawful assembly" in a protest over a Confederate Statue, and it's potential removal.  The Klu Klux Klan, neo-nazis and other white nationalists group clashed with Black Lives Matter and other folks are fighting about the removal of the statue.  Now, I don't support the Klan, neo-Nazis or any white nationalist groups. But it gets me thinking - these statues have probably been in place for decades.  I suppose people have been walking by these statues for decades and have never given them much thought. Then suddenly comes along Black Lives Matter and other agitators and now they all have to come down.  Like most people, I never would support slavery or anything like it.  But for the life of me, I can't understand why the statues MUST be removed.  To some people, that is their heritage, some of the Confederate Generals are known for their bravery in battle.  So why must these statues be removed now?  To appease BLM and another segment of our society that would like to pretend that sliavery never existed?  Do they think we can cut out the history of our country and pretend like it never happened.  It's not like anyone is proposing to bring slavery back. 

It would seem to me in the Black Community that there are far more pressing issues than the removal of some hunks of granite that have been sitting there for decades - if not 100 years.  I have an on-going discussion with a black friend about this and in the end, we always agree to disagree.