September 17, 2020
Dear Lafayette County Supervisors and Board of Aldermen,
Oxford has been my home for nearly 15 years. I’ve spent my whole life swimming around in this humid bucket we call Mississippi, and I love it with all of my heart.
I’m fortunate to travel regularly because of my work. Photography has given me an amazing opportunity to experience many gorgeous places around the world and to meet some extraordinary people along the way. This sounds cliche but rings true. Travel helps you grow as a person and it enables you to see beyond your bubble, if you’re willing to be empathetic towards others. As I travel and navigate this complex world, I try to learn as much as possible about the people I meet and I do the same with Oxford. All we have to do is ask and listen.
I want you to listen.
I want you to think outside of your ‘circle.’
I want you to be empathetic towards your community when we speak.
When you do these things, you begin to see the truth rise. You begin to understand that this community is stronger if we come together. You begin to see what that statue really means. That statue does not remotely represent the diverse and loving community that surrounds it. It is simply a sign of hate. A constant reminder of oppression. Oxford is full of people who are forward thinking and we want to move forward with the rest of the world. We can all come together if we open ourselves up to the idea of listening to other perspectives and noticing that we all pretty much want the same things. We want ourselves and our communities to be happy, fulfilled, safe, and healthy. There are obviously disagreements on how to achieve that, but if we treated each other like complex human beings rather than one-dimensional heroes and villains, it would be a lot easier to figure this all out.
This isn’t about “erasing history.” It never has been about that. It’s about moving a symbol that is rooted in racism. The statue is a daily reminder of oppression. Some of us who live here don’t seem to understand that, but the rest of the world sees exactly that. The time to move forward is now. I implore you to take it down.
Sincerely,
Paul Gandy, Oxford resident and documentary photographer