TO THE EDITOR:
Last Friday I attended the play in Memorial Hall, the first time I’ve been there since moving back to the area. There on the wall was a plaque for William Saunders, one of the dozens that commemorate alumni or staff from the 1800s. Many were Confederate officers or politicians from before, during and after the Civil War — men of means who probably owned slaves. A few were listed simply as “successful planters.”
Whatever one thinks of the effort to change the name of Saunders Hall, it’s clear that purging the campus of memorials to white supremacists will be a long, long process. In the meantime, I urge students of color to bring a new perspective to their encounters with these remnants of the past.
Don’t forget the suffering of those injured, but focus on the fact that your very presence at this University refutes and rebukes the ideas of racial superiority. Beyond that, every time you succeed on a test or paper, or shine in a class discussion, old KKK members are spinning in their graves. By disproving the lies of prejudice, you triumph over their beliefs. Revel in it.
Joe Swain Jr., ‘77
Carrboro
