The Sons of Confederate Veterans has been issued a permit by the Stone Mountain Memorial Association [SMMA] to gather at Stone Mountain, just outside of Atlanta, to celebrate Confederate Memorial Day at the end of April.
In Memento Park in Hungary, authorities created an open air museum for statues and monuments from the communist era. Perhaps they should do the same in Stone Mountain for all the Confederate monuments and statues that were torn down during the last few years.
Hi Daniel. Thanks for the comment, but I think this would take us in the opposite direction of what SMMA already has envisioned for the park. We need less attention on Confederate monuments at Stone Mountain and more that points to different shared histories as well as a recognition of the white supremacist roots of the sculpture itself.
I don't see any change to state law in the immediate future and I do hope that SMMA consults with a host of other institutions, including EJI. A lot will hinge on which company wins the job of transforming the museum and surrounding grounds.
In Memento Park in Hungary, authorities created an open air museum for statues and monuments from the communist era. Perhaps they should do the same in Stone Mountain for all the Confederate monuments and statues that were torn down during the last few years.
Hi Daniel. Thanks for the comment, but I think this would take us in the opposite direction of what SMMA already has envisioned for the park. We need less attention on Confederate monuments at Stone Mountain and more that points to different shared histories as well as a recognition of the white supremacist roots of the sculpture itself.
Glad you referenced EJI, the Equal Justice Initiative. I hope the SMMA will consult them, as they should have some good advice. There must also be the will to change the state law “ which mandates that Stone Mountain Park be maintained as a monument to the Confederacy”. https://www.ajc.com/neighborhoods/dekalb/permit-okd-for-confederate-memorial-day-event-at-stone-mountain-park/E2L3PERLR5FABENVI5GSS3JWUQ/
I don't see any change to state law in the immediate future and I do hope that SMMA consults with a host of other institutions, including EJI. A lot will hinge on which company wins the job of transforming the museum and surrounding grounds.