That’s three for three this night. Flawed human beings are just flawed human beings; you can't raise them up without lying about them. The monument doesn't honor Shaw alone or individually. Independent Premium Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Premium. As a general, he fought the Confederacy with energy and brutal commitment. As president, Grant's policy towards Native American people could easily be described as cultural genocide. President Trump responded to the Pike statue’s dismantling on Twitter late Friday by calling for the immediate arrest of those involved. Massachusetts Infantry, the second African American regiment in the Civil War. Demonstrators Topple Statues in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park The statues of St. Junípero Serra, Ulysses S. Grant and Francis Scott Key were torn … The statues in San Francisco are among the latest to be dismantled as monuments around the country are toppled following last month’s racially charged killing of George Floyd. But Grant's legacy also has less admirable aspects. But the Shaw family were dissatisfied with that idea. Trump cancels Camp David trip, hunkers down at White House Floyd, a black man, died May 25 in the custody of the Minneapolis Police Department in Minnesota. The rioters justified taking down Key's statue because he was a … Statue of Ulysses S. Grant as it stood in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco (Wikimedia Commons) I’m suspicious of all monuments, and I believe in dismantling those that tell warped tales about our national past, suppress its horrors, and gild its errors by encasing them in tragic dignity. ... Ulysses S. Grant and Francis Scott Key being torn down in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Please enable JavaScript and reload this page. Read our full mailing list consent terms here. The protestors knocking down statues today are trying to get the American public to confront our legacy of racism. Want an ad-free experience?Subscribe to Independent Premium. Saint-Gaudens' final design shows Shaw on his horse against a relief of Black soldiers, which Saint-Gaudens designed from live studies of African American men from Boston and New York. Are you sure you want to delete this comment? Janet Yellen made more than $7 million in speaking fees in 2019, 2020, ‘Great victory’: Gun rights activists celebrate as Trump administration pulls stabilizing-brace ban, Greatest undrafted players in NFL history, Baby bust: Pandemic to spark biggest fertility declines since 1970s, Adam Carolla urges anti-lockdown Cali Dems to wake up: ‘Imagine trying to pull this s— off in 1955’. They insisted that the memorial had to honor the regiment Shaw fought and died with. He instigated an illegal and bloody war against the Lakota people of the Black Hills, and used federal force to push Native people onto reservations and to slaughter the buffalo they relied on for food. SAN FRANCISCO – Protesters in Golden Gate Park toppled statues of Fr. Franklin Roosevelt created America's social safety net and led the country to victory over the Nazis. Shaw and 40 percent of his regiment were killed in 1863 in an attack on Fort Wagner in South Carolina. U.S. elections are not worth sacrificing one’s ‘personal’ life, Healing in a national crisis, thy name is Greg Stanton, Any supporter of Trump must denounce what happened at the U.S. Capitol. They, “Together," the monument reads, “they gave to the nation and the world undying proof that Americans of African descent possess the pride, courage and devotion of the patriotic soldier. Whenever you put someone on a pedestal, you physically elevate them over their fellow humans. Real heroism is something we make together. Grant's wife had legal ownership of several Black people when he married her, and he himself kept a person in slavery for a year before freeing him at the start of the Civil War. But his early writings are racist, and in his late Seventies he slept with his teenaged grand-niece. Our journalists will try to respond by joining the threads when they can to create a true meeting of independent Premium. But another, perhaps more useful lesson is that we need to think about heroism differently. and View Comments, Terms of Use / Privacy Policy / Manage Newsletters. But even people who are admirable in some ways often are less so in others. Protesters on Friday toppled a statue in San Francisco of former President Ulysses S. Grant, who famously led the Union Army to victories that crippled and ultimately brought down the Confederacy. As historian James Loewen wrote in his beautiful essay about the memorial, "the 54th Massachusetts is…a story of human possibility. CNA Staff, Jun 20, 2020 / 09:41 am (CNA).- A statue of Catholic missionary St. Junipero Serra was toppled in a San Francisco park Friday, along with statues of Francis Scott Key and Ulysses S. Grant. In San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, protestors toppled a statue of Francis Scott Key, the composer of the National Anthem and a slave owner, as well as a statue of Spanish missionary Junipero Serra, a Roman Catholic priest who forcibly converted and brutalized Native American people. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. You can also choose to be emailed when someone replies to your comment. Vandals also brought down a statue of Francis Scott Key, the composer of "The Star-Spangled Banner." Their story suggests that we too might give meaning to our lives by doing the unthinkable and daring the impossible on behalf of justice. Due to the sheer scale of this comment community, we are not able to give each post the same level of attention, but we have preserved this area in the interests of open debate. Grant's record of great good and great evil isn't unique. Masks will become a new norm after coronavirus pandemic ends, public officials predict, After making history, Citizen Trump will regain power to block Twitter followers, Double duty: Best 10mm handguns for hunting and home defense, Cuomo skewered for opening Bills game with restaurants shuttered, Doctor: “Doing This Every Morning Can Snap Back Sagging Skin (No Creams Needed)”, Uncle Sam is struggling to fill the military as 70% of U.S. youths disqualified from serving, Trump’s efforts to end ‘forever wars’ only reshuffles deployed troops. Two confederate monuments torn down, one of them was dragged through the street and left on the courthouse steps. But he also interned Japanese Americans in concentration camps. Real heroism is something we make together. Protests against systemic racism and police brutality have taken place worldwide in the weeks since, including in several U.S. cities where controversial monuments have recently been toppled amid that unrest. Ulysses S. Grant statue toppled in San Francisco. We need to change our perspective on how to memorialize complicated individuals from history, Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. Over the weekend, Black Lives Matters protestors continued to deface and tear down memorials to those associated with slavery and racism. - Quiz: Can you match the nickname to the National Football League player? Ulysses S. Grant Protesters in San Francisco defaced and toppled the statue of former President Grant, who led the Union Army during the Civil War, in Golden State Park, on Friday, June 19. Are you sure you want to mark this comment as inappropriate? To do that, you have to fudge their flaws and their humanity. Grant's wife had legal ownership of several Black people when he married her, and he himself, George Washington established American independence and Democratic institutions. Indeed, the statues in San Francisco came down the same evening that protesters on the other side of the country successfully toppled a Confederate monument in Washington, D.C. Shaw and 40 percent of his regiment were killed in 1863 in an attack on Fort Wagner in South Carolina. With the men of the 54, , though, he points to a better world, in which memorials are more honest and more brave, and, It wasn't a mistake to pull down the statue of Ulysses S Grant, Trump attacks racial justice protests at rambling Tulsa rally, Eric Trump refers to racial justice protesters as 'animals' at rally, One person shot dead inside autonomous protest zone, reports say, Protesters topple Confederate monuments across the US on Juneteenth, You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully, Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful language is not acceptable, Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties, We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification. One takeaway from the protest is that we need different heroes. The designer of the Shaw memorial, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, originally planned a typical noble-guy-on-horse, standalone statue. The Washington Times Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines. Ulysses S. Grant statue toppled in San Francisco By Vandana Rambaran | Fox News June 20, 2020: A statue of former President Ulysses S. Grant– the Union general who led his army to victory against the Confederacy during the Civil War– was toppled on Friday as hundreds gathered in San Francisco to celebrate Juneteenth. A statue of Ulysses S. Grant, the nation's 18th president and a general who fought for the Union during the Civil War, was defaced and toppled by protesters in San Francisco on Friday The Pike statue has long been relatively obscure, however, in part because it depicted him in civilian dress and was designed primarily to honor his achievements in leading an order of Freemasons. - No arrests were made, the local CBS station added. 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