Submitted by christian on Fri, 06/26/2020 - 11:39
Historical monuments do matter. Instead of tearing down memorials to controversial figures, more important is to look history in the eye and reflect on our awkward relationship to it. Activists are deluding themselves if they think that removing a statue will make any difference to inequalities of race, class or gender. Rather than insisting that statues should come down, they need to engage in the politics needed to bring about real change. The act of understanding history relies on recognising how the past informs the present, and not editing out parts we don’t like.
