A group of protesters in Durham, North Carolina posted a video on Monday evening of themselves illegally tearing down a historic statue and Confederate memorial in what they say is a response to the weekend violence in Charlottesville, Virginia.
With law enforcement authorities nowhere in sight, the protesters are seen surrounding the statue chanting, “No KKK! No fascist USA! No Trump!” as someone climbs the memorial, ties the rope around it before pulling it down.
The mob is then heard cheering with others joining in to kick the statue on the ground which broke on impact. The memorial which is on county property outside the old Durham County Courthouse was dedicated in 1924 to soldiers who fought the Civil War for the Confederacy.
“It needs to be removed,” said Loan Tran, one of the organizers.
“When I see a Confederate statue in downtown Durham or really anywhere, it fills me with a lot of rage and frustration,” she added.
The Confederate monument before an after it was vandalized. Credit: Twitter/Derrick Lewis
While the illegal removal of the statue is taking place, the lack of presence of any public or local law enforcement officials to stop the mob from public vandalism of government property is evident.
One protest organizer who spoke to local TV station WNCN claims the act of vandalism and destruction of property is a response to the Unite The Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, which quickly turned violently and deadly.
Some protestors posing with the statue after it was publicly vandalized and illegally brought down in Durham, North Carolina. Credit: Twitter/Derrick Lewis
The Unite The Right rally was a White Nationalist demonstration rally protesting the removal of a Confederate memorial of General Robert E. Lee from a public park. The rally quickly turned violent after Alt-Left groups like Antifa and Black Lives matter among other crashed the rally leading to confrontations.
The protesters who brought down the moment in Durham told WNCN their motive, which is to “smash White Supremacy” and remove all “Confederate statues in Durham, in North Carolina, all across the country.”
“People can be mobilized and people are angry. And when enough people are angry, we don’t have to look to politicians to sit around in air conditions and do nothing when we can do things ourselves,” said one of the protesters, Takiyah Thompson.
A mob of protesters tore down a historic statue and Confederate monument which had been outside the old Durham County Courthouse since its dedication 1924. Credit: Twitter/Derrick Lewis
Durham County Spokeswoman Dawn Dudley explained why the monument has remained in place.
“Due to a North Carolina state law passed a few years ago, Durham County is prohibited from removing or making substantive alteration to historical monuments and memorials…There is a statute in place making the efforts you mention below difficult to move forward,” she added indicating that the only way for monuments to be moved would require a reversal of the law.
As of 8:30 pm local time, it was unclear if any of the protestors and perpetrators involved in the public vandalism of government property had been arrested or charged.
No official statement from local authorities has been issued.
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