Silent Sam Memorial on UNC’s Campus Defaced

University Police have opened an investigation after the words “Black Lives Matter” “Murderer” and “KKK” were spraypainted on the Silent Sam memorial on UNC’s campus on Sunday.

via Stephanie Lamm Twitter (@slamm_5)

The university website says the monument was erected in 1913 as a memorial to the 321 UNC alumni who died fighting for the Confederacy in the Civil War.

via Stephanie Lamm Twitter (@slamm_5)

The monument has been at the center of the debate over monuments and naming of buildings recently. The Carolina Board of Trustees voted in May to rename Saunders Hall – named for William L. Saunders who served as a Colonel in the Confederate Army before purportedly leading the North Carolina Ku Klux Klan and going on to serve as North Carolina’s Secretary of State.

via Stephanie Lamm Twitter (@slamm_5)

The board also chose to put a 16-year freeze on renaming monuments in place at the same meeting. The board said this would allow the education and curation efforts on campus to take effect.

READ MORE: Saunders Hall to be Renamed Carolina Hall

UNC Associate Vice Chancellor of Communications and Public Affairs Rick White issued the following statement following the incident.

“We understand that the issue of race and place is both emotional and, for many, painful. Carolina is working hard to ensure we have a thoughtful, respectful and inclusive dialogue on the issue,” he said. “The extensive discussions with the Carolina community this past year by the Board of Trustees and University leadership, and the work we will be doing to contextualize the history of our campus is a big part of advancing those conversations. We welcome all points of view, but damaging or defacing statues is not the way to go about it.”

READ MORE: Should UNC’s Silent Sam Share the Recent Fate of Confederate Flags?

A white cloth was placed over the monument to cover the spray paint.

via News & Observer

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