Confederate Statue Defaced At Duke University

CHARLOTTE, NC -- A statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee was found defaced Thursday morning on a chapel portal on the campus of Duke University.

The news of the vandalism comes came the same morning as President Donald Trump continues to stir controversy, today criticising cities removing statues that memorialize the Confederacy. ”Sad to see the history and culture of our great country being ripped apart with the removal of our beautiful statues and monuments,” Trump tweeted Aug. 17.

Duke’s president spoke out against the vandalism discovered early Aug. 17. “Duke Chapel is a place of sanctuary and refuge that belongs to every member of the Duke community,” Duke President Vincent E. Price said in a statement. “Each of us deserves a voice in determining how to address the questions raised by the statues of Robert E. Lee and others, and confront the darker moments in our nation’s history.”

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Price said that vandals taking “matters into their own hands” and defacing property at a church “undermines the right, protected in our Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion, of every Duke student and employee to participate fully in university life.”

Confederate monuments have become targets of vandalism in the wake of last weekend’s tragedy in Charlottesville, Va., with similar vandalism occurring at the old Loudoun County Courthouse in Leesburg, Va. A confederate statue was pulled down by angry protesters in Durham, N.C. on Monday. You can read more about that story here.

Photo courtesy of Duke University: Photo by William Snead/ Duke Photography
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