ATLANTA (AP) – While Confederate statues and monuments around the nation get removed, defaced, covered up or toppled, some new memorials are being erected, by people who insist their only purpose is to honor the soldiers who died for the South.
Supporters of these new Civil War monuments describe a determination to hold onto their understanding of history.
“What I want to get across is how much the South suffered, not only through the war but after the war, during the Reconstruction years,” said David Coggins. His Confederate Veterans Memorial Park in Brantley, Alabama, dedicated a memorial to “Unknown Alabama Confederate Soldiers” in September.
Others say race has nothing to do with these new monuments, unlike those erected in the early 20th century.
“The problem was with some of the other statues that were put up, that were basically intended to intimidate people,” said Danny Francis, commander of a Sons of Confederate Veterans unit in South Carolina. “We’re not trying to oppress anyone – we’re just historians. We welcome everybody.”