Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has asked that 11 statues representing leaders and soldiers of the Confederacy be removed from the Capitol Building’s National Statuary Hall Collection. She made the request in a letter to the Joint Committee on the Library, which is chaired by Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MS) and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA).
“While I believe it is imperative that we never forget our history lest we repeat it, I also believe that there is no room for celebrating the violent bigotry of the men of the Confederacy in the hallowed halls of the United States Capitol or in places of honor across the country,” Pelosi wrote.
Congress authorized the display in 1864 and allowed each state to donate two statues of citizens known for “distinguished civic of military services.”
Lofgren welcomed the request and said the Architect of the Capitol should move quickly to remove the statues. Blunt, in turn said this is a decision better left to each state. “I think the best way for that to happen would be for the states to take them back, if that’s what they want to do.” There’s a process for this, and I think it’s working,” he said.
Liberals have been agitating for the removal of statues across America since the murder of George Floyd, a Minneapolis man who was killed by police officers as they were attempting to take him in to custody for passing counterfeit bills.