Confederate Flags
Long story, short the Southern Poverty Law Center shared that over 160 Confederate symbols have been removed in 2020, and North Carolina are 24 of them, making our state the second in removals of confederate flags across the United States. They also reported that at least 168 Confederate symbols were renamed or removed from public spaces in 2020.
Here’s the breakdown: Ninety-four (94) of those symbols were Confederate monuments. Comparatively, 58 Confederate monuments were removed between 2015 and 2019.
By the end of 2020, North Carolina had removed 24 Confederate symbols, second only to Virginia (71). Alabama (12) and Texas (12) tied for third place.
At least 167 Confederate symbols were removed after George Floyd’s death on May 25, including one symbol in Arizona that was stolen from public property. Only one symbol was removed prior to George Floyd’s death – Virginia replaced Lee-Jackson Day with Election Day in April.
While a total of 312 Confederate symbols have been removed or relocated from public spaces since the Charleston church shooting, South Carolina’s Heritage Act ensured that no symbols were removed last year despite grassroots efforts. The report shows that more than 2,100 Confederate symbols are still publicly present in the U.S., and 704 of those symbols are monuments. This is more than the number of government buildings, Confederate monuments and statues, plaques, markers, schools, parks, counties, cities, military property and streets and highways named after anyone associated with the Confederacy.
