Letter from Stephanie Rea dated July 13, 2020

Dear Judge-Executive Kenny Imes and Members of the Fiscal Court:

I am a citizen of Calloway County and a mother of two, and I support the removal of the statue of Robert E. Lee that sits on our court square. This statue, like all statues that memorialize confederate generals, honors a man who fought to keep black people enslaved. How can we expect our community to be a safe place for all when we honor those who fought for the enslavement of other humans? We cannot.

Robert E. Lee was a traitor. He stood for tearing this nation apart on the basis that states should have the right for its white citizens to own black ones. We now put people in jail in this county for treating animals the way blacks were treated in time that Robert E. Lee was fighting to continue such inhumane actions. Why would we honor him and his ideals by allowing this statue to remain? We degrade ourselves by its mere presence.

I have lived in the south for most of my life. and am familiar with the argument that Robert E. Lee and the Confederate flag are symbols of Southern culture. They are not. They are a symbol of terrorism and hate crimes that were once deemed legal. Actual symbols of Southern culture are collard greens, cornbread, hospitality, respect (yes, sir and no ma'am), magnolia trees, as well as country, folk, gospel, jazz, bluegrass, and blues music.

If our county and country are to move forward socially, morally, spiritually, economically, we must honor the great men and women who have come in peace to bring people together, and we must take action to remove any statue that memorializes anyone who committed acts of terror against any human beings anywhere. I beg you, as soon as possible, to vote in favor of this statue's swift and long overdue removal.

Respectfully,

Stephanie Rea

Professor of Music

Murray State University

Department of Music

The foregoing is part of a collection of correspondence to various Calloway County government officials as well as remarks made before the Calloway County Fiscal Court in 2020, which the Sentinel obtained from County Judge-Executive Kenny Imes' office.