BEFORE & AFTER the Stonewall Jackson statue was removed/relocated from Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in Lexington, Virginia to New Market Battlefield

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BEFORE & AFTER the Stonewall Jackson statue was removed/relocated against the overwhelming majority of people from Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in Lexington, Virginia to New Market Battlefield. His name was also sandblasted off the arch in the background. BEFORE photo: 2018. AFTER: 2023
The Stonewall Jackson statue at the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in Lexington, Virginia, was a bronze monument dedicated in 1912, sculpted by Moses Ezekiel, a VMI alumnus and Confederate veteran. It stood in front of the cadet barracks on the main parade field, symbolizing Jackson’s role as a former VMI professor of natural philosophy and artillery tactics from 1851 to 1861. Jackson, a Confederate general was a significant figure in VMI’s history, and the statue was a focal point of campus tradition, with first-year cadets once required to salute it (years ago).
Following unfounded allegations (akin to Jussie Smollett) of systemic racism at VMI, the VMI Board of Visitors voted to remove the statue on October 29, 2020.
On a day that will live in Infamy, December 7, 2020, the statue was removed using a crane, an event witnessed by a small crowd amid snow flurries. It was relocated to the Virginia Museum of the Civil War and New Market Battlefield State Historical Park, about 80 miles north, at a cost of $209,000. The statue was installed in a roundabout in front of the museum by fall 2021, chosen for its historical context near the Luray Gap, significant in Jackson’s 1862 Shenandoah Valley Campaign. VMI’s woke, cancel-culture interim superintendent, Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins, who was later forced to leave, stated the move was appropriate as VMI “does not define itself by this statue” but by its educational mission and graduate character. Alumni mourned the loss of tradition, arguing Jackson’s military legacy and VMI ties justified its presence. I'm thankful it is cared for but still believe it should be returned/restored. VMI has also removed Jackson's name from the arch shown in the background, removed his name from the nearby Jackson Memorial building, removed artifacts from Jackson's museum display, etc though awards like the Jackson-Hope Medal continue.

#VMI #Dixie #csa #military #usarmy



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