CHESTERFIELD, S.C. — A petition pushes for the removal of a monument in downtown Chesterfield.
The stone monument stands outside the courthouse that was dedicated after the first secession meeting.
A plaque on the back of is reads, “To the brave men, devoted women and faithful slaves.” It also lists the dates of the Civil War. The monument was placed at the location by the Daughters of the Confederacy in the 1920s.
“Kids are walking by this and they’re seeing this proud monument about slaves obeying their masters,” Colby Quick said.
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Quick and a friend started an online petition to have the monument removed. It had 720 signatures Tuesday afternoon.
He said the goal is to bridge the racial divide.
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“There’s racial divide in this country that should not exist,” Quick said. “There’s racial prejudice in the country that should not exist and things like this just perpetuates that even further.”
The Heritage Act doesn’t allow for it to be moved. There are also local protections.
Colby said if the monument can’t be moved, he’d like to see the plaque altered. He said he’ll take the issue as far as he can.
Several people said they want the monument to stay. Some called it an important piece of history of the town and it isn’t hurting anyone.