In 2015, there were over seven-hundred Confederate monuments displayed in cities, parks, and towns throughout the United States. Since that time more than 25 American cities have removed one or more Confederate monuments from public view, sparking a heated national debate - Is this revisionist history or an attempt at rectifying a historical wrong? The country is extremely divided. Baltimore's four explicitly Confederate statues were removed during the night in August of 2017. In this episode, Wes asks experts to contextualize these monuments and their purpose, while asking how we will address memorials and historical memory in our future cities.
Guests on this episode include:W. Fitzhugh Brundage, William B. Umstead Professor of History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; scholarly adviser to the Commemorative Landscapes of North Carolina project.
Anne Sarah Rubin, Professor of History at The University of Maryland, author of a number of books, including Through the Heart of Dixie: Sherman’s March and American Memory.
Eric Holcomb, Executive Director CHAP & Historic and Architecture Preservation Division Chief.
Sheila Gaskins, Baltimore Artist and Community Organizer, founder of Artpartheid.