TO THE EDITOR:
The Silent Soldier, sculpted by John Wilson, a Harvard professor and artist, commissioned to commemorate 321 enlisted UNC alumni, joins ranks with his acclaimed sculptures of the Pennsylvania Volunteer and the Unarmed Soldier, Daniel A. Bean, as artistically significant monuments honoring soldiers who fought the Civil War. More importantly, these sculptures remain historical markers of the sacrifices made by 650,000 men of Union and Confederate regiments and the 37,000 widows and 90,000 orphans whose lives were altered by their service.
Whether from the North or South, men responded to a call to duty and experienced death, disease and amputating wounds in greater magnitude than soldiers before or since. Visiting such military monuments as this, just as with the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, is an experience of art provoking a view into the humanity, suffering, fortitude and fearlessness of the soldier regardless of the ideology for which the war was fought.
The Silent Soldier stands and should remain standing as a reminder of the willingness of these men to sacrifice their lives for their community, society and families and their courage, tenacity and fortitude in the face of adversities as they went valiantly into the dark night.
Dr. Edith Bernosky
Chapel Hill
