Rally at Town Hall, march to Confederate monument begins at 7 pm
Donald Archer in front of the Confederate Monument after it was defaced
July 29. By Dave Yochum. A community organization with roots in the local faith community will hold a rally in front of Cornelius Town Hall followed by a march to the Confederate monument in front of Mt. Zion United Methodist Church on Aug. 4, the anniversary of the monument’s dedication 111 years ago.
Unity in Community, whose founders include a former assistant pastor at Mt. Zion, plans a peaceful demonstration and a mock debate between an AME Zion minister, abolitionist Bishop James Walker Hood and Judge Armistead Burwell.
Burwell was the NC Supreme Court associate justice who gave the keynote speech at the dedication of the monument on Aug. 4, 1910.
The goal: Remove the statue which has been a thorn in the side of many church leaders for years.
Private association owns the land
The Mt. Zion Monumental Association controls the tiny patch of land under the monument, despite being on the front lawn of the church.
The co-senior pastors at Mt. Zion have called on the Association to remove the monument.
The primary contact for the association, Donald Archer, has not responded for comment.
Rally at 7 pm
The rally begins at 7 pm in front of Cornelius Town Hall. At some point rally-goers will march to the monument which is about a quarter of a mile away.
Recent history
The statue, which is not on church property, has been defaced at least twice in the recent past and with recent unrest there have been growing concerns that someone could be hurt during an effort to take down the statue. It is now fenced in and security cameras have been installed.
Protests and violence across the US following the murder of George Floyd brought a national reckoning to the treatment of African Americans over the years. Many Confederate monuments have been damaged, toppled or removed.
The Confederate Monument here includes the Confederate battle flag and a Confederate soldier standing at parade rest, with his rifle resting on the ground.
Masks are required for all unvaccinated attendees and recommended for those fully vaccinated. Social distancing strongly recommended. The event concludes at 8:30 pm. For more info, click here.
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Since the Monument Association seems to have no interest in removing the monument, can the church erect some type of barriers on their property to conceal the monument? I’m betting there would be contributions from the community to make that happen.
Great idea! Cover this shame put on a decent community.
This statue is a part of history and , most certainly, a part of Cornelius.
It’s interesting that church leaders consider this a priority and not something more important like our country being invaded by illegal immigrants.
Removing this statue will not improve one person’s life. Leave it be.
This monument is private property and is on private property. I thought the left was wanting the monuments on private property. Yet, here they are wanting it off private property. Clearly shows they want them gone, not even on private property. Its even in view of a cemetery. I know as I photographed it today. If you want to understand why monuments were erected they were for the community memory to the community loss, both north and south. See “Forever In Mourning: Union and Confederate Monuments, 1860-1920.” https://www.academia.edu/Forever_in_Mourning_Union_and_Confederate_Monuments_1860_1920
I view the marker as historical, not political or racial. It is also protected by the First Amendment. The proposed march is counterproductive in that it will increase racial tensions, not mitigate them.
It is interesting that the article also cites the George Floyd murder trial. The prosecution in that case never alleged racism on the part of the defendant. Nonetheless the incident was used by race baiters to spark a year of violence across the country. Don’t allow your righteous intentions to be similarly abused.
It will improve the lives of every Cornelius resident who is not racist and lives up to the United States value that “all men are created equal.”