HOUSTON (AP) – A Houston museum dedicated to conserving African American culture says its decision to display a more than 100-year-old Confederate statue is about providing Black Americans with a way to confront slavery’s painful legacy and include their lived experiences in the conversation.
The towering bronze statue, called ‘Spirit of The Confederacy,’ was removed from a downtown Houston park in June.
The statue arrived at the Houston Museum of African American Culture on Monday.
John Guess Jr., the museum’s CEO Emeritus, says displaying the statue will allow African Americans to confront and engage with the painful history of slavery.
According to Wikipedia, “Spirit of the Confederacy, also known as the Confederacy Monument, is an outdoor bronze sculpture depicting an angel holding a sword and palm branch by Louis Amateis, (formerly) installed in Houston‘s Sam Houston Park, in the U.S. state of Texas. It was erected in 1908 by a local chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
The decision to move the statue to the museum was made by the City of Houston.