Heroic Protesters Tore Down A Confederate Statue, And Then Twitter Made It Funny
The removal of the monument in Durham, North Carolina was a much-needed service.
On Monday evening, protestors in Durham, North Carolina assembled around a confederate statue erected outside a courthouse and pulled it to the ground. The heroic event was catalyzed by the white supremacist "Unite The Right" assembly in Charlottesville, Virginia, as well as the terrorist car attack that killed counter-protestor Heather Hayer and left 19 others injured.
It was brave, and provided much-needed inspiration against the hate-filled movement, though some did not see it that way. North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper was quick to condemn the action, saying that there was "a better way to remove these monuments." A popular movement to remove Confederate monuments has grown since June 17 2015, when a white supremacist murdered nine people in a black church in Charleston, South Carolina. Patience for the so-called "better way" is understandably running thin, especially among black citizens living in cities that, with these monuments, glorify a cause that fought for their enslavement. Energized groups of activists have inherited the mantle of shutting down hateful messages and their emboldened broadcasters, and it feels like true resistance.
The cherry on top of the monument's destruction was the surge of funny tweets posted by users celebrating its newly-degraded status. Have a look at some of the best ones below.