Vol. 79/No. 28      August 10, 2015

Facts on racist memorial

Many readers of the Militant were struck by the odiousness of the inscription on the Battle of Liberty Place monument in New Orleans [depicted in the July 27 issue]. I did a little cursory research on the monument to try to learn about its history. It, like the Confederate battle flag, has been a focus of struggles that have burst forth several times in recent decades. But what is not clear to me is whether the inscription, as captured in the photo that appeared in the Militant, remains part of the monument.

An article on the New Orleans Historical website says, “In addition to planting the marker in a less obtrusive location, the city removed the plaque championing white supremacy and affixed a new plaque commemorating the Metropolitan Police casualties, several of whom were African-American.”

Many readers of the Militant will have the impression that the monument as it exists today continues to display the inscription hailing white supremacy. It is not clear to me that it does. Of course this does not change the character of what this is a monument to, or how it has been a rallying point of white supremacists.
David Rosenfeld
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Editor’s note: Rosenfeld is correct. The photo and caption as they appeared don’t tell the whole story. The inscription glorifying white supremacy, which was added to the monument in the 1930s, was covered with a slab of granite in 1981 after attempts to have it taken down failed. The entire monument was removed to a warehouse during street repairs in 1989.

It was reinstalled in a less prominent location as a result of a suit by supporters of David Duke, a white supremacist, anti-Semite and former leader of the Ku Klux Klan who served in the Louisiana legislature from 1989 to 1992. Duke organized a rededication ceremony in 1993, which was protested by Black rights supporters. These facts underscore why fights around the Confederate battle flag and racist monuments are part of the class struggle today.  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home