A Question of Hate

Throughout history, artists have been commissioned to sculpt statues to show reverence to mythical Gods or impactful humans who have dramatically influenced the course of history.  In ancient Greece  the gods Zeus or Poseidon were believed to have exerted  power and influence over ancient Greek society. Thus artists sought to immortalize them via the construction of a sculpture or statue.  The Egyptians in an effort to commemorate the power of the great Pharaohs constructed incredible monuments. This practice of sculpture construction is a practice that dates back thousands of years. However there is another practice that has gained momentum as of late called "sculpture dismantling" that dates back to the ancient world as well.  Recent scholarship has indicated that much had been done to erase the female Pharaoh, Queen Hatshepsut from ancient Egyptian history, by those that reigned after her. Statues and other artifacts connected to Hatshepsut and her legacy were destroyed as a result of their efforts.  Why? Because history is written by the winners and those that reigned after Hatshepsut allegedly wanted her legacy erased because she was a female. 1

Two weekends ago a White Supremacist Rally was held in Charlottesville, Virginia, under the guise that they were to there toprotest the removal of a statue of Civil War general, Robert E. Lee.  The rally was met by an intense resistance and eventually violence erupted. Horrifically, multiple people lost their lives that day. Let's be clear , the possible removal of the statue did not fuel the hatred of the Neo-Nazi  or White Supremacist factions attending the rally that day. Hatred was the culprit. The opportunity to move forward an agenda of hate was the reason for the rally and the violence that ensued was a vehicle used  by the protesters to act upon their hate. This hatred towards other races and religions is a major part of the White Supremacist culture which has lived and been perpetuated for centuries in our great nation. Crimes have been inflicted upon humanity and gone unpunished  at the hands of these " hate groups".  As a nation we need to move forward a stronger series of political reforms.  These reforms need to be designed to eliminate crimes against humanity which are motivated by hatred and violence, with more vigorous prosecution for those responsible.

Tearing down statues is not the answer to removing hate from our nation.  We need to pump the brakes and be reflective about what we are really trying to accomplish. Statues in America have long been built in remembrance of military leaders, social activists or political figures who have accomplished something of significance.  The judgment of their legacy and impact is up to those that they leave behind. The opinion whether favorable of unfavorable may even change from time to time. People that make history usually are polarizing figures that cause a measure of discord, but discord is a fundamental and necessary part of our democracy. Removing or destroying a statue does not make that figure any less polarizing; only time can accomplish that.

Statues are constructed in the United States to serve as reminders of people and their actions that have changed our nation for better or worse. Unfortunately these actions at times unquestionably changed our nation for the worse. Especially glaring are those of the Civil War era and the issues that those fighting the Civil War sought to resolve.  The consequences of the resolution should not include the  erasing of history through statue removal or dismantling, because the winners get the final say. Rather, the answer is to educate our culture about the issues that led to conflict and their resolution. Then we need to examine the "question of hate" and act upon eliminating it wherever and whenever possible.

1. American History Encylopedia,  Hatshepsut Joshua J. Mark   October 19, 2016