October 8, 2020
Dear Lafayette County Supervisors and Board of Aldermen,
I write to you today to explain the historical hurt that surrounds the Lafayette County Courthouse Confederate statue; and even more importantly, I write to voice my personal convictions, which drive me to passionately request the statue be removed. I’ve lived in Mississippi all my life, and I’ve been a resident of Lafayette County and a member of this community for the past 15 years. A community that you have been elected to lead. A community full of constituents begging to be heard, listened to, and validated, so I ask you now to read this letter with not only an open mind but also an open heart—a heart open enough to feel the pain the statue continues to cause people in this community, in your community. I also ask that you read this letter with the understanding that not everyone’s families or lives look like yours—not everybody has the same history and not every member of Lafayette County experiences life here the the same way; and if you think I’m wrong, you only have to look at the various opinions on the statue that stretch county-wide.
Now on to why I write…
“A just and holy cause.” Those words have been ringing in my ears since protests against racism and police brutality erupted throughout our nation after the death of George Floyd. Those words are inscribed on the statue of the Confederate soldier that stands overlooking our town’s most prominent area in front of our county’s courthouse.”In memory of the patriotism of the Confederate soldiers of Lafayette County Mississippi. They gave their lives in a just and holy cause.” Those words alone should be enough to tear down the statue and never look back. This inscription stands over our courthouse—a place that is supposed to represent fairness and justice for all, and yet the courthouse and the justice it should represent is overshadowed by an enduring memorial to a Confederate soldier who believed an entire race to be inferior and fought for an entire race, my race, to be enslaved and counted as property, counted as cargo to be bought, sold, beaten, raped, and killed.
Now, I know some people say the Civil War was not about slavery; however, a quick study of the State of Mississippi’s Articles of Secession refutes that belief without question or doubt. The second sentence of the Articles of Secession states “[o]ur position is thoroughly identified with the institution of slavery—the greatest material interest in the world…and a blow at slavery is a blow at commerce and civilization.” They go on to explain how the Union is a direct affront to the institution of slavery and how the Union’s principles “[have] been subverted to work out [Mississippi’s] ruin.” They support this claim by stating various facts, such as “the imperious law of nature [that] none but the black race can bear exposure to the tropical sun” and “[the Union] advocates negro equality, socially and politically, and promotes insurrection and incendiarism in our midst.” Now I must ask you, do you consider Mississippi’s historical support and fight for slavery “a just and holy cause”? How can we as a community accept a statue calling one of our nation’s most egregious atrocities a “just and holy cause”? How can one still defend this monument and believe it accurately represents our county? More importantly, what does your unanimous decision to keep and protect the statue say about you and your character? What does it say about how you view the people you’ve been elected to lead?
Now for those who say the statue is “heritage not hate,” I’d argue that the statue is my heritage too, yet it is not one that I celebrate. You see, I too am a Son of the Confederacy. I am here today because my great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather, a white slave owner and Confederate supporter, had children with his slaves. However, it is abundantly clear that the statue only serves to remember and celebrate my white ancestors, while erasing the history and negating the feelings of my black ancestors who suffered torture, hardship, and trauma at the hands of those fighting to separate Mississippi from the Union. Those who continue to honor the Confederacy do not take into account the history of thousands of black families who only know a past full of hurt and loss and yet live in a county with leadership that continues to allow the memorialization of their hurt and pain. Ultimately, our heritage was stolen when we were treated as cargo and taken to serve a nation that we built—only for that nation to ignore our pleas and demands to be treated equally and civilly. I don’t ask for the statue to be removed to erase or forget history, but so that we can pave the way to remember history correctly. We can’t and shouldn’t erase our history, but we also should not celebrate the injustice that endures because of it. How can we learn from our past if we continue to sugarcoat and whitewash it?
It is not an overstatement to say that our country and our county have come a long way, but it is also not an overstatement to say we still have a long way to go to achieve equality for all. We may be equal on paper; however, the Confederate statue serves to reinforce the notion that we are not equal in practice. This moment is history in the making, and it’s going to press on regardless of your decision. Right now, though, you have an opportunity to strongly place Mississippi on the right side of history. Mississippi burning was a long time ago, and it is time to finally extinguish the flames once and for all. The Confederacy lost over 150 years ago, and we will never see the full extent and beauty of Lafayette County’s future for all citizens until we finally confront our past and lay it to rest where it belongs.
Respectfully,
Antonio Tarrell
Lafayette County citizen & filmmaker