Some African-Americans in Owensboro are joining a growing call to remove Confederate monuments in the wake of nationwide protests against racial injustice.
The local NAACP is calling for the removal of a Confederate monument on the lawn of the Daviess County courthouse. The bronze statue features a soldier holding a rifle on top of a granite pedestal. It was erected in 1900 by the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
Rhondalyn Randolph, president of the Owensboro NAACP chapter, says Owensboro is no longer a community that would glorify white supremacy.
“We just want to show we need to progress forward from that kind of thinking, and our community demographics, we are changing," Randolph stated.
Randolph said the statue is a part of history that needs preserving for educational purposes. She wants the monument relocated to Owensboro’s Museum of Science and History or a local Confederate cemetery.
Daviess County Judge-Executive Al Mattingly hasn’t taken a position on the issue, and told WKU Public Radio that he doesn’t know if removing the monument would require a vote by the county commission.
The effort to remove the statue comes amid racial unrest across the country following the deaths of African-Americans at the hands of police.
The Jefferson Davis Monument at the Kentucky State Capitol was removed last week.
