Stockton University Removes Namesake's Statue Amid Nationwide Controversies

GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP, NJ — Stockton University is the latest site of a controversial statue removal. The removal of controversial statues of famous men has been a subject that led to violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, and led Philadelphia officials to second-guess a decision to put a statue of Frank Rizzo in front of the municipal services building.

On Thursday, Stockton University temporarily removed the statue of its namesake Richard Stockton from the university’s Richard E. Bjork Library, the university announced this week. The statue will return to campus as part of an exhibit currently being developed for the library "that will enable all of us to learn more and to join together in meaningful dialog about this controversial figure," Stockton University Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Lori Vermeulen said in a letter to students that was shared with the media this week.

Stockton, a Princeton native, was the son of a wealthy landowner. He owned slaves, but he also signed the Declaration of Independence. He was a controversial figure in his own time, Vermeulen said in the letter.

"Stockton University’s mission is to 'develop engaged and effective citizens with a commitment to life-long learning and the capacity to adapt to change in a multi-cultural, interdependent world,'" Vermeulen said in the letter. "This mission affords us the unique responsibility to provide an opportunity for our students to learn about the facts surrounding Richard Stockton’s place in American history as well as in Stockton’s history."

The college bearing his name was established by the State Legislature in 1969, with the first classes coming to the school in 1971. It has been known as Stockton State College, Richard Stockton State College, The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey and now Stockton University. There is also an exit on the New Jersey Turnpike named after Stockton.

Although this is a discussion that has been going on for several years, university officials felt that recent events nationally led to the decision, according to the report. Stockton University President Harvey Kesselman told The Press of Atlantic City he expects a backlash, but also said the university is the perfect place to have a civilised exchange of ideas concerning a controversial topic.

Earlier this month, three people were killed when riots broke out at a gathering of White Nationalists dedicated to protecting a statue of Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville, Virginia.

This prompted responses locally, including a candlelight vigil in Galloway and peaceful protests in Atlantic City, Collingswood and in Stockton’s hometown of Princeton.

The controversy has also impacted at least one other statue in the region, as Philadelphia Councilwoman Helen Gym said the Frank Rizzo statue must come down in the wake of the Virginia violence. This week, former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell said it “may have been a mistake” to put Rizzo’s statue in front of the municipal services building, according to philly.com.

Patch file photo