The Chronicle
Volume45,Number 19 WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. THURSDAY, January 17,2019
—___—_^^ H _ HaBBaaaHaaa ^ HaBBH ^ |BaBHaHaBHHIBaHHHaaaiBBHBaa ^ BaaBaH a Ha gBHaaaMaMBMavBMBHBMBaaaHUBiBMBKaDaaBuaM>aHin"^!saKW«HMw»i^^
Opposing sides meet at
Confederate statue
BY TEVIN STINSON
THE CHRONICLE
Chants of “Your
Southern Soldiers were
Enemy Combatants” and a
rendition of the Battle
Hymn of the Republic
divided the corner of
Fourth and Liberty streets
last Sunday afternoon as
more than 100 people gath
ered downtown to speak in
support of or against the
city’s decision to remove
the statue which was
placed at the old Forsyth
County Courthouse in
1905.
Those opposed to the
removal of the statue,
which depicts a
Confederate soldier hold
ing a rifle, showed up
downtown just after 12
p.m. Initially, Heirs of the
Confederacy planned to
hold a support rally at the
former place where the
Silent Sam statue stood on
the campus of UNC Chapel
Hill before it was toppled
last year, then travel to
Winston-Salem for a simi
lar event.
In response to the
scheduled meeting at the
statue, a group called “Get
Hate Out of Winston-
Salem” scheduled to meet
on the same day and time
to show their support for
the city’s decision to have
the statue removed.
Freezing rain, sleet, and
snow didn’t stop residents
from traveling from near
and far to make sure their
voices were heard on
Sunday, Jan. 13.
While taking a break
from leading chants such as
“Take it Down” and “Get
Hate Out of Winston,” rally
organizer Lillian Podlog
said we must pay attention
to what the statue repre
sents.
“...Yes it is history but
we must ask what that his
tory is. That statue was put
up in 1905 by a man who
murdered black people and
went on to become mayor
of Wilmington. That’s the
history we’re talking about
here,” said Podlog. “If you
want to honor history let’s
be clear on what that histo
ry is. It’s not about honor
ing a soldiers like they
say.”
Those who want the
monument to stay where it
is argue that the statue and
their support of the
Confederacy have little to
do with slavery and the
Supporters and protesters of the Confederate Monument gather in Downtown Winston-Salem.
oppression of black people.
One of those men was Bill
from Davie County. While
standing near the statue
with about 20-25 other
men, Bill told The
Chronicle that he studied
the American Civil War for
nearly 20 years and the city
made the wrong decision.
“...I studied that time
period for 18 years and the
sad truth of it is there’s so
much ignorance about what
that war was about. It was
not about slavery, it was
about tariffs and money. It
was a political war,” he
said. “...The fussing at that
time was mostly about tar
iffs. The Southern states
wanted to be a free econo
my and they wanted to
have free trade with the
world.”
Aside from a few
shouting matches, cold
stares, and the occasional
middle finger, both sides
remained calm during the
encounter. More than a
dozen officers with the
Winston-Salem Police
Department were on hand
to ensure everyone was
safe.
Despite the efforts of
the Heirs to the
Confederacy and others
who are against the statue
being removed, after
receiving a letter from the
City of Winston-Salem and
Winston Courthouse LLC,
for owners of the property
where the statue currently
See Statue A2
Government shutdown hits African-Americans
the hardest
BY STACY M. BROWN
NNPA NEWSWIRE CORRESPONDENT
With over 50,000 fed
eral employees, the fourth
congressional district in
Maryland represents the
fifth largest number of
workers, and Maryland
likely counts as the third
largest impacted state by
the government shutdown,
according to Democratic
STORAGE
Rep. Anthony Brown.
“So, I’m hearing about
this, like my colleagues,
each and every day from
my constituents, while this
shutdown is set to become
the longest in the nation’s
history,” said Brown, who
joined Congressional
Black Caucus (CBC) Chair
Karen Bass (D-Calif.);
Rep. Bennie Thompson
(D-Miss.), and Rep.
Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), on
a media conference call on
Friday, Jan. 11.
The CBC members
said they were calling for
an end to the shutdown so
that workers can again
begin to collect their pay-
checks and critical govern
ment services can resume.
During the call, the
members discussed the
debilitating effects of the
ongoing government shut
down as thousands of fed
eral employees are unable
to collect their paychecks.
They also denounced
President Donald Trump’s
threat to declare a state of
emergency if Congress
refuses to fund a border
wall - one in which the
president claimed during
his campaign that Mexico
would pay for.
“This shutdown and the
whole issue of the wall is a
fake crisis,” Bass said.
“At the end of the day,
even if he had all the
money, it would still take
eminent domain to build
See Shutdown on A2
We Rent U-Haul Trucks!
MOVE IN
SPECIAL
for first month
y Professional self-storage.
ASSURED
STORAGE
of Winston-Salem, LLC
(336) 924-7000
www.assuredstoragews.com
Office Hours: Mon-Fri 9am-5pm; Sat 9am-3pm
Gate Hours: 5am-10pm
4191 Bethania Station Road • Winston-Salem
WILSON,
VicU/