This opinion is special to the Mirror by Bill Payne of Cape Charles.
I am delighted the Northampton County Board of Supervisors have taken up the question regarding the Old Courthouse Green Confederate Monument. After conducting a public hearing on October 13, 2020, the Supervisors discussed the substance of the controversy at their November 10, 2020 regular meeting.
The Board was collectively hesitant in their assessment of the issue and frankly raised more unanswered questions than possible resolutions. Their reluctance to suggest one or more potential remedies is understandable – this is a “hot potato”.
Supervisor Bennett suggested to his colleagues that they must hear more from our citizens, but lamented the community is largely uncomfortable presenting their opinions. The fact is there probably are as many solutions out there as there are community alliances.
It was encouraging to hear Supervisor Dixon express, “I think we have an opportunity to be different”, and then add, “We can’t do nothing.” But still the discussion largely centered around calls for further study and the need to “wait and see”.
Some have urged the Board to convene a facilitated group of citizens who would propose a nonbinding resolution. However, at the end of the day, it is unlikely our leaders will be presented with an answer that will please everyone. Therefore, I conclude it’s time for our Board of Supervisors to demonstrate leadership and deliberately act.
If the State of Mississippi’s leadership can navigate politically troubled waters and embrace a 21st century state flag absent the stigma of the “Stars and Bars”, Northampton County’s managers can certainly realize the fulfillment of all that is right and fair for our community.
I urge our Supervisors to give this daunting task high priority until every Northampton County citizen can pridefully walk the Old Courthouse Green free of its symbolic reminder of social injustice and inequity.
Paul Plante says
Since the statue base is already there, what should be done is to simply take off the statue of the soldier and replace it with a statue of Oliver Bennett.
Then every Northampton County citizen will be able to pridefully walk the Old Courthouse Green free of its symbolic reminder of social injustice and inequity, and have something not only nationally praiseworthy, but internationally praiseworthy as well with Oliver Bennett up there instead as a symbol of the brave new world Northampton County is finally entering into by ditching the dead Confederate dude and replacing him with Oliver Bennett.
Anon says
In a nod to our gender fluid society, perhaps we should replace it with a statue of Buffalo Bill doing his tuck dance? Motion sensors could be added, so Goodbye Horses plays everytime a citizen walks by. If it becomes a success – as I am certain it will – a hole could be added where political prisoners could be held, whilst passersby scream at it to put the lotion on its skin!
Louise Johnson says
agree
don green says
Pending whatever “remedies” Northampton’s Board of Supervisors decides to take, I certainly hope the offending statue doesn’t descend from its very high pedestal to attack the apparently endangered Mr. Payne. The monument been peaceful for decades, but who knows what may happen in these dangerous times? Meanwhile, it appears that Northampton County is filling up with Virtue-Signalers, proto-Marxists, and Antifa/BLM types who are in great need of enlarged safe spaces within which to shelter when they become particularly frightened of the harm those apparently benign monuments may cause!
Scotiagirl says
“Supervisor” Bennett, apparently you do not follow those who post comments here, ‘else you would know we are anything but “uncomfortable expressing opinions”.
And here’s another vote in support of replacing the “dead dude” with a life sized version of you. Pick a nice outfit.
Bob says
If history offends you
Don’t look
Paul Plante says
Is history going to change when the dead Confederate dude comes down and a statue of Oliver Bennett is hoisted up there to replace him?
What would be appropriate here would be to put the statue of Oliver Bennett on top of the pedestal, way up high for all the world to see, as a potent symbol of the oppressed Black man, who because of systemic racism in the country was denied an education and who had to clean cigarette butts out of urinals at the Cape Charles bus station and scrape bubble gum off the floor with a razor blade while less qualified ignorant white folks who were repressing him got all the cushy jobs, and then put the statue of the dead Confederate dude upside down with his head buried in the ground next to the statue of Oliver Bennett, as if Oliver Bennett in a moment of joyous emancipation, had climbed up there and threw the dead Confederate dude down bodily.
That would strike a blow for all the oppressed Black folks still wearing the shackles of slavery in Cape Charles and Northampton County because of the dead Confederate dude up there with the gun keeping them in bondage.
Talk about a tourist attraction to bring those needed tourist big bucks in from outside the insularity of the Delmarva Peninsula, that would become a cultural icon and a shrine that would have people from all over the country flocking to see it and worship at the feet of Oliver Bennett.
So there’s a win-win-win anyway you want to look at it.
Louise Johnson says
agreed
MJM says
My attitude remains the same. Everything I read tells me this statue memorializes a man, many men, and an entire group of people who fought long and hard for an entire way of life that they believed in. They had that right, and determination, and many believed in them and loved them for it. The people memorialized live on in spirit, just like our lost loved ones that we memorialize with grave markers in our cemeteries. We all know that no one here loved and wants to memorialize everyone in our cemeteries. In fact I am quite sure there are many who have some vey animated and negative words about some that have passed on. What happens to any one of us who enters a graveyard and desecrates the memorials to others ? The law looks pretty seriously upon that, and I can think of no situation where it could even be considered as a correct public opinion or idea to be allowed to do so. I see no difference here. It’s desecration by angry and antisocial people who come up with such an idea to destroy or move such a statue. Please leave the statue be.
Paul Plante says
Running this by my focus group, they would like to see a big bronze plaque at the base of the statue with the words “THE GREAT EMANCIPATOR” in raised letters on it, and a big ball up on top of the pedestal painted like a picture of the earth you see on nature shows on TV, and on top of that ball, portraying the graphic image of “standing on top of the world” would be the well-muscled and buff and toned statue of Oliver Bennett striking a heroic pose like the Black dude in the olympics giving the Black Power salute, and down on the ground where the dead Confederate dude is upside down with its head and upper torso buried in the ground as if hurled down from a great height with great force, there would be a sign pointing to the dead Confederate dude saying “he,” in reference to the dead Confederate dude, fought the “law,” with an arrow pointing up to Oliver Bennett, and the “law” (here another arrow points upwards to reinforce the point of exactly who it was that won, as if the upside down dead Confederate dude with his head buried in the dirt were already not proof enough) won.
What powerful symbolism – the Black man rising up from oppression in the person of Oliver Bennett, who has suffered greatly because of Jim Crow and systemic racism which robbed him of an education, which is what systemic racism is all, deny the Black man like Oliver Bennett an education so he can be kept down by being kept ignorant, throwing down his oppressor in the form of the dead Confederate dude.
People will be flocking into Cape Charles to see it and worship at it and pay their homage, and that is going to bring in some big bucks and a lot of coin, and put Cape Charles on the map as it never has been.
Lifelong says
Just let it go! Removing the statue will not change history! I love Dr. Carter’s suggestion! I also think Mr. Bennett is a very nice person! Grow up and stop being haters! Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas to all of you!