Derek Alderman, a UT geography professor who studies southern memory and commemorative culture, was featured in a discussion on National Public Radio’s show A1 about Confederate monuments. (August 16 edition)
The debate over Confederate monuments and memorials often boils down to history versus hate and it’s heating up again. A group of activists in Durham, North Carolina toppled a statue of a rebel soldier in a scene of reminiscent of Baghdad in April of 2003. It was part of the nationwide response to the violence that unfolded at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, a few weeks ago where many Confederate flags flew alongside swastikas and racist signs carried by white nationalists, neo-Nazis, and other hate groups.
Alderman also provided insight to the Knoxville News Sentinel about why Knoxville does not have any confederate monuments. Read the story online.