How does this artwork elucidate its Toppling?
I watched it groan and shiver and come asunder. I mean, it feels biblical. It's thundering and starting to rain. It’s almost like heaven is trying to wash away the soiled contaminated remains.
On the night of August 20, 2018, the day before the 2018–19 academic year began, another "Remove Silent Sam" rally was held, beginning with speakers at 7 p.m. The protest had been billed as a rally in support of graduate student Maya Little, whose original court appearance for defacing the monument was scheduled for that day. Protestors marched down and briefly blocked Franklin Street, Chapel Hill's main downtown street. In contrast with the 2017 rally, police stayed in the background, and video of the protest was reported as showing police moving away from the monument shortly before protesters pulled it down."In a speech at the protest, Little said, "It's time to tear down Silent Sam. It's time to tear down UNC's institutional white supremacy".Large signs with such inscriptions as "The whole world is watching", "Which side are you on?", "For a world without white supremacy", and a list of victims of racial violence (beginning with "Unnamed Black woman beaten by Julian Carr") were held around the monument, blocking it from view while heavy ropes were tied to it. A later report referred to "torches" as well. WUNC Managing Editor Dave DeWitt, who was present, called it "a well-planned and executed effort".At 9:20 p.m., Silent Sam was felled; the crowd cheered. "People [were] screaming and jumping in disbelief." A newscaster on the scene described the mood as "jubilation". Holding signs and chanting "stand up, fight back" and "This is what democracy looks like", some protesters stamped on the statue or tried to cover it with dirt.
Police, who cordoned off the area around the pedestal, arrested one person who concealed their face in the public protest (prohibited in North Carolina). Some police are reported to have been smiling. Crowds remained around the base, and the Associated Press reported that students were drawn to see it as the news of the toppling spread.Later that night, campus staff loaded the statue, which did not seem to be seriously damaged, onto a flat-bed dump truck and removed it from the site.
Franklin Street concealed their face Associated Press Which side are you on? white supremacy The whole world is watching Julian Carr WUNC