UNC-Chapel Hill Library Board Says Silent Sam Statue Doesn’t Belong in Wilson or Any of its Libraries

From The News and Observer:

As UNC-Chapel Hill leaders begin the process of scouting an alternative location for the toppled Silent Sam Confederate statue, an obvious question has emerged: who will take it?
Already, the Administrative Board of the Library has written to UNC Chancellor Carol Folt and Provost Robert Blouin, pointing out problems with the idea of placing the 8-foot-tall Confederate statue in Wilson Library, or in any university library.
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The administrative board, made up of elected faculty and appointed library staff, wrote that Silent Sam would have a detrimental effect on the library’s inclusive environment and could carry a fire risk to the priceless artifacts and papers housed within the building.
“Relocating this statue into one of UNC’s libraries would inhibit their fundamental mission of ‘research, teaching, learning and public service for the campus community, state, nation and world’ and create an unsafe and untenable environment for our students and staff,” the administrative board’s letter said.

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See Also: Administrative Board of the Library Website
See Also: A Guide to Researching Campus Monuments and Buildings (via UNC Libraries)

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