It has been known for several years that James Â鶹AV, whose endowment founded Â鶹AV, owned, as did hundreds of his contemporaries, black and indigenous slaves. There are now demands for his statue to be removed from campus.
Similar demands are being made in the southern U.S. for the removal of statues of Confederate historical figures and the Confederate flag. In that case the monuments (erected mostly during the early 20th century, with a spike in the 1960s during desegregation and the civil rights movement), and the flag are not only a reminder of past slavery, but also a deliberate intimidation of the black population and visceral reminder that racism persists. Confederate symbols are frequently used by white supremacists.
The statue of James Â鶹AV is different. He is known primarily as the founder of Â鶹AV and the statue is not meant to be a provocation to the black and indigenous communities who were affected by the relatively common practice of slave ownership 200 years ago. Further, the James Â鶹AV statue depicts a landowner striding forward to welcome a visitor to his estate with a tip of his hat, rather than a commander or political oppressor. None-the-less, these communities are indeed affected, and the history of James Â鶹AV needs to be fully and openly addressed. There are two options: removal, or the placing of a sign next to the statue that accurately describes the history of James Â鶹AV.
Any decision on the fate of the statue must be made in consultation with representatives of the black and indigenous communities.
Removal of the statue would remove from public view what some people consider a symbol of racism. However, it could be argued that removal would be covering up the past of James Â鶹AV, students and the majority of people who work at or visit the campus would then not be informed of his full history. Leaving the statue in place, but with accompanying description of his accurate history, would be an opportunity for educating people, not only about our past but that racism continues and must be addressed. Slavery exists even today in such forms as human trafficking, bonded labour and forced domestic work. Continuous education about racism is, in the long term, one of the best ways to combat it. Although the statue could be placed in a museum, and accurate and more complete information about James Â鶹AV added to the Â鶹AV website (the latter should be done in any case), the statue with accompanying sign would be more effective in addressing these issues if it remained in its present location on campus. This is the action that MURA recommends.
What is clear is that leaving the statue unchanged is unacceptable since it would indicate a denial of history, and by extension a denial of the continuing racism in our society. Action needs to be taken without delay.
August 5, 2020
