I’ll remove Confederate monuments and put them in museums: Elizabeth Warren

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The U.S Senator Elizabeth Warren said the Confederate flag is getting tossed if she becomes president. Warren waded into the contentious debate during a town hall hosted by CNN. She said that she would take action as president to remove the divisive symbol regardless of the argument that the flag celebrates heritage, not hate. An audience member asked, “As a presidential hopeful, do you have any plans on addressing the removal or lack thereof of the reminders of the nation’s dark past, or have any plans on preserving the nation’s history in a way that explains it in a more education sense versus showing praise to the losing side”? Warren responded forcefully and said, “Support removing Confederate celebrations from federal land and putting them in museums, where they belong”.

The Confederate flag has re-emerged in the national debate over the past few years as advocates have urged leaders to remove the symbol, which was flown by the Confederate army during the Civil War. The issue gained particular salience following the 2015 church shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, and again following the 2017 white supremacist demonstrations in Charlottesville, Virginia.

The U.S President Donald Trump suggested that there were good people on both sides of the demonstrations, and refused to denounce white supremacy. In response to the Charlottesville protest, which was organized in support of a Confederate monument, and left one counter-demonstrator dead. That apparent refusal to denounce white supremacy resulted in widespread criticism and added fuel to the effort in localities across the country to remove the monuments and symbols of hate that the Confederacy often represents.