Kingston Press Release and Resolution - Monuments

PHILIP T.
KINGSTON
COUNCIL DISTRICT 14
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRESS CONFERENCE 12:00 PM
City Council members, historians, clergy, and artists are requesting the mayor let the Council vote on
whether to remove Dallas Confederate monuments. They will present a press conference at 12 p.m.
Monday, Aug. 21, at Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St., in the lobby
Council member Philip Kingston drafted the memo July 26 and filed it Aug. 7. Aug. 15, the Mayor
decided instead to instigate a task force, which will deliberate for 90 days before taking a decision to
the board of the Cultural Affairs Office. Only after that would it return to council, with the timing at
the discretion of the Mayor.
The advocates are insisting their objectives are clear: Three months of a task force is not needed
when elected representatives can take action in a matter of weeks. Their constituents have been
addressing this issue to them, and this vote allows council to represent them. Per the memo, the vote
will decide whether or not to remove the statues, and a task force will be charged with deciding what
to do with the removed structures.
Kingston started the discussion last month after countless residents contacted him, requesting the
monuments be removed.
We know that the majority of the City Council favors removal. It's important for the Council to lead
from a moral position, says Eric Folkerth, pastor of Northaven United Methodist Church and a
resident of District 14, where the monument for Robert E. Lee stands. There's a moral reason we
want them to go... they have never not been divisive symbols.
WHEREAS African Americans have been subjected to over 400 years of abuse in
America including some of the most brutal physical, mental, and emotional abuse
ever suffered in human history, and
WHEREAS the institution of slavery caused and perpetuated this abuse and made
denial of African American equality and the idea of white supremacy the law of the
land, and
WHEREAS the Confederacy and its military fought to preserve slavery, deny
equality, and promote white supremacy, and
WHEREAS the military defeat of the Confederacy only removed some barriers to
African American equality, and
WHEREAS African Americans continued to face discriminatory laws, legal practices,

and unpunished illegal violence specifically aimed at preventing them from
achieving equality from Reconstruction through the Jim Crow Era, and
WHEREAS even after the economic, social, and legal gains made by the Civil Rights
movement, African Americans are still denied equality by a society that
discriminates against them even when hard-won laws call for equal treatment, and
WHEREAS Confederate monuments along with streets, schools, and other public
places named for prominent Confederates continue to be glaring symbols of our
refusal to allow full and equal participation in society by African Americans, and
WHEREAS these Confederate monuments and other commemorations were made

for the explicit purpose of distorting the violent and oppressive history of the
Confederacy and to preserve the principle of white supremacy in both law and
practice, and
WHEREAS the Confederate monuments present a false and irredeemable distortion

of history not ameliorated by any artistic or educational value, and
WHEREAS it is fundamentally unjust to require African Americans to support

hateful symbols with their tax dollars and to explain to their children the meaning of
these public symbols, and
WHEREAS historians and religious leaders of diverse backgrounds have

consistently called for the removal of Confederate monuments and symbols from
public property for many years, and
WHEREAS the continued public display of Confederate monuments and

commemorations is antithetical to the clear public policy of the City of Dallas to be a
welcoming city to people of all backgrounds and to scrupulously seek equality for all
of its citizens, and
WHEREAS the continued public display of Confederate monuments and
commemorations is harmful to the competitiveness of the City of Dallas in the
modern economy, and
WHEREAS the people of Dallas have observed the brave example of the people of
New Orleans in removing Confederate monuments, and
WHEREAS the time has come for a robust public discussion of the history of the
monuments and commemorations and the policy of the City of Dallas regarding the
standards for public commemoration of any person
Now, Therefore, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF

DALLAS:
1. That the display of Confederate monuments and the naming of public places
for prominent Confederates is against the public policy of the City of Dallas
and is condemned,
2. That Confederate monuments located on city-owned property must be
removed expeditiously,
3. That city-owned property named for prominent Confederates including,
without limitation, streets and buildings, must be renamed expeditiously,
4. That Confederate symbols displayed on any city-owned property must be
removed expeditiously except where otherwise prohibited by law or
prevented by public safety concerns,
5. That for the purpose of accomplishing the above, the Council creates the
Commemorations Task Force
a. The following persons are appointed to the Commemorations Task
Force:
__________________________________ Chair
__________________________________ ________________________________
__________________________________ ________________________________
__________________________________ ________________________________
b. The Commemorations Task Force is directed to consider the best

methods for accomplishing the goals of this resolution including what
to do with monuments and symbols, the potential for private
fundraising for removal, standards for public commemorations, and
suggested name changes,
c. The Commemorations Task force will convene no fewer than 2 public
meetings for the purpose of educating the public about the history of
the monuments and commemorations and to receive public input on
the goals of this resolution,
d. The Commemorations Task Force will return to Council on December
6, 2017, to report its findings and recommendations,
e. The Commemorations Task Force is an advisory body whose
members are not public officials for purposes of Chapter 12A of the
city code.

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PHILIP T.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRESS CONFERENCE 12:00 PM

WHEREAS African Americans continued to face discriminatory laws, legal practices,

WHEREAS these Confederate monuments and other commemorations were made

WHEREAS the Confederate monuments present a false and irredeemable distortion

WHEREAS it is fundamentally unjust to require African Americans to support

WHEREAS historians and religious leaders of diverse backgrounds have

WHEREAS the continued public display of Confederate monuments and

Now, Therefore, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF

b. The Commemorations Task Force is directed to consider the best

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