Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 7-11-17

Letter To The Editor
Healing Our Communities – One Monument At A Time
I would like to address the recent decision by Commissioners White, Crist, Hagan and Murman, who voted against the relo- cation of a Confederate monument at the Court- house in downtown Tampa.
Weareatatimeinour nation where city leaders and citizens are willing to confront our dark past, ac- knowledging that these symbols do not represent our diverse community at large. Tampa has been given the opportunity to be on the right side of history, and creating a legacy for generations to come.
As we move this memo- rial out of the public square and into the cemetery, we will put to rest a painful era in our history, celebrating our progress and looking to the future development of Tampa Bay.
Let us consider the pur- pose of many of the Con- federate monuments that were dedicated throughout our nation. The Daughters of the Confederacy (who erected the Tampa monu- ment in 1911 during the Jim Crow era) were deter- mined to memorialize southern Confederate sol- diers, minimizing the atrocities of the Civil War and the oppression and vi-
olence of slavery.
It was unveiled on the
50th anniversary of the se- cession from the United States – a monument that stood proud, making a statement that the south still supported inequality and the war that could have divided our nation.
The DAC “rewrote the textbooks” in the nation, to prevent the south from being tarnished for their stand for slavery. Children in our nation read books claiming that there was “kindness between slaves and owners.”
Any book that spoke of the Confederacy fighting to protect slavery was re- jected. A campaign was launched to glorify the cause of the Civil War, and deny the truth about the horrors of the institution of slavery. I wept deeply as I read the biographies of many who have been me- morialized in our nation. General Nathan Bedford Forrest, who fought for the Confederate Army, became the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. His name was recently re- moved from a school in Jacksonville – a long over- due change.
A monument was erected in Columbia, S. Carolina for J. Marion
Sims (Father of Gynecol- ogy) who brutally experi- mented on female slaves with no anesthetic. What painful reminders for the descendants of slaves, who are grieved that we are not willing to confront this his- tory.
Many of these monu- ments were erected to cre- ate cultural resistance to Black equality during the Civil Rights era. In our richly diverse city, no one should be painfully re- minded by a public display that we continue to support a war that was fought for slavery – we are better than this. It is an indication that something is wrong at a deeper level.
Commissioner Les Miller has stated, “It is time for change.” We must stop and ask some impor- tant questions – Are the concerns of those request- ing the relocation valid? Are we listening with em- pathy to those who have ex- perienced violence, pain, prejudice and oppression due to the repercussions of racial injustice?
Is the proposal to erect a “diversity wall” behind the monument an attempt toputabandaidona“gap- ing wound?” Should we as leaders take the “high road” as Commissioners
Miller, Kemp and Higgin- botham did, and under- stand that this can open avenues for healing of past wounds?
A Civil Rights monu- ment would be more ap- propriate as we remember our history, and celebrate our pathway to freedom, justice, equality, and unity. I would be proud for this to be displayed in my city.
Historically, when na- tional atrocities have oc- curred such as the holocaust in Germany, and apartheid in S. Africa, Truth and Reconciliation Commissions were estab- lished to permit victims to process the injustices that they experienced, allowing TRUTH to be told to move the nation forward.
After the Civil War, a false narrative was created in our nation to change public memory about the horrors of slavery and in- stead, glorify the Confeder- acy. As a result, the nation groaned under 100 years of segregation, violence, lynching and Jim Crow laws that were established to prevent equality and healing between the races.
All eyes are now on Tampa as we choose to make this important his- torical decision. This is NOT a Republican or Dem-
ocratic vote! My hope is that a Truth and Reconcili- ation Commission will be formed in Tampa Bay.
This will allow purpose- ful dialogue, helping us to “work across the aisle” and understand the individual and societal cause and ef- fect of racial injustice. This is a platform that is created to promote truth, repara- tion, and reconciliation that can lead to the trans- formation of our commu- nities. Honest dialogue is necessary, no matter how painful. I emphatically re- quest that each County Commissioner reconsider his or her vote and choose to be a bridge builder for racial reconciliation in our city. To move this monu- ment is not to deny history, it is to put it in its proper place – the Oakwood Cemetery.
What are we fighting for – stone monuments or the next generation? We are all sons and daughters of the United States of America. May we not allow southern patriotism or the next elec- tion to overshadow a moral decision for removal, pro- moting unity and justice for all. The soul of Tampa Bay and the nation may very well be at stake.
JOY GREEN Tampa, FL
TUESDAY, JULY 11, 2017 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 7