UNC Interim Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz issued a statement Friday in response to a settlement made by the UNC System with a pro-Confederate organization.

Guskiewicz sent a letter to the campus community where he shared his thoughts on the resolution of the future of the Confederate statue known as Silent Sam, which stood on UNC campus for over a century before being toppled by protesters in 2018. In November, the UNC System Board of Governors crafted a settlement with the Sons of Confederate Veterans, ceding possession of the monument to the group as well as creating a $2.5 million trust fund for its restoration and to build a permanent location for it off UNC campus.

Guskiewicz described it as a challenging time for him and the university as he considers what the settlement accomplished.

“On one hand,” he wrote, “the monument will never return to campus, and for this I am especially grateful. On the other hand, some of the values and initiatives we have prioritized since I became Interim Chancellor are being tested.”

Guskiewicz, who has publicly shared his opposition to the Confederate monument returning to campus since assuming the interim chancellor position, said no state-appropriated funds, tuition dollars, student fees or current unrestricted gifts from donors were used to set up the fund. He said he’s met with many community members about their concerns over the fund, saying he understands, appreciates and empathizes with their sentiments. His letter directs readers to a university website which has information about the settlement. The website does not include a reasoning of the UNC System negotiating with the Sons of Confederate Veterans confidentially or why a settlement was determined before the SCV filed a lawsuit against the system.

The interim chancellor pointed to ways he has been engaging with students and staff on how to create a more inclusive atmosphere on campus. The Campus Safety Commission and the Reckoning Shared Learning Initiative have already been enacted, while the Commission on History, Race and A Way Forward will launch in January.

“The settlement ensures the monument will never return to campus,” said Guskiewicz, “but issues of racism and injustice persist, and the University must confront them. I now want to focus on our shared values of diversity, equity and inclusion, and I will continue to reject and condemn those individuals or groups who seek to divide us. We have a lot of work to do to thoroughly address and reconcile with our past.”

Students and community members held a demonstration to protest the UNC System’s actions on Thursday.

 

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