Another piece of positive news: after being removed by intolerant bullies, the Robert E. Lee highway marker is set to go back in display in downtown Charleston, South Carolina.
Source: Robert E. Lee Camp 1640 SCV, Corey Allen
Category: news
bookmark_borderGood news on Frank Rizzo statue
Another piece of good news relating to statues: the statue of Frank Rizzo, the first Italian American mayor of Philadelphia, will be reappearing in some capacity.
The statue, one of many murdered in 2020 in an effort by intolerant bullies to eradicate all public art depicting people who differ from the norm, used to stand outside the city’s municipal service building. He was damaged by racist vandals before being removed overnight by the cowardly city government in June of 2020. Disgustingly, the acts of vandalism included throwing noodles and gravy at the statue, attempting to set him on fire, and spray-painting the word “fascist,” which is ironic given that the people who did this were the people engaged in a campaign to obliterate from existence all people who differ from the norm.
But I digress.
Yesterday, the city agreed to return the statue to the Frank Rizzo Monument Committee, the organization that had originally created and donated it to the city. Unfortunately, under the terms of the agreement, the committee can only display the statue behind a fence on private property. However, this resolution is at least better than the statue being kept out of sight in storage, and it’s a good thing that Rizzo will be owned and displayed by people who actually like and respect him. Plus, the city will cover the cost of the repairs necessitated by their own cowardice.
A spokesperson for the committee said that they are “delighted with the Art Commission’s approval of the litigation settlement reached with the City’s lawyers. We get the Statue back, immediately, and the City will pay for all repairs. We will determine where it will be placed once repaired, and we are in active negotiations with the Parker Administration on its future location and hope to have an announcement soon.”
Sources: Italian Sons & Daughters of America, We The Italians, CBS News
bookmark_borderRobert E. Lee’s name restored to a high school in Texas
Despite the attempts of cruel, vicious, and brainless bullies to destroy this happy occasion, a high school in Texas has restored Robert E. Lee’s name.
Midland Lee High School had its name changed to Midland Legacy High School in 2020 as part of the campaign by intolerant bullies to eradicate the existence of all people who are different from the norm. But this past Tuesday night, the school committee voted to change the name back!
The school board meeting took over 3 hours, involved what was described as “a loud, woke opposition,” and ended with a 4-3 vote. This means that unfortunately, a large number of people, including 3 members of the school board, are intolerant bullies who believe that people who are different from the norm should be excluded, bullied, hurt, and ultimately obliterated from the earth.
However, the bullies lost. This high school once again has a name which sends the message that people who are different from the norm have a right to exist. Kids who are different, who have trouble making friends, who don’t fit in, will receive the message that they are just as good as anyone else and have a right to exist just as they are. This school name sends the message: Robert E. Lee was different from the norm, and he is being respected and honored, so you have the right to be respected and honored, too.
What a revolutionary concept.
The Alamo City Guards SCV Camp made an excellent post in which they noted, “Renaming LEE to its original name, Robert E. Lee, is a step towards embracing our diverse cultural backgrounds.” I could not agree more strongly. Without honoring Confederate historical figures in our public spaces, there is no meaningful diversity at all.
Posts and further info:
bookmark_borderPete Hegseth on statues…
“We recognize our history; we don’t erase it. We don’t follow the woke lemmings off the cliff that want to tear down statues. We look at and learn from our history, all aspects of it, and so Arlington deserves to have, and we’re grateful to the state of Virginia for partnering with us, it wasn’t easy, we fought to make it happen, and the Reconciliation Monument will return to Arlington, where it belongs, to recognize the service of Americans of all chapters. We’re not tearing stuff down; we’re done with that. We’re putting statues back, we’re putting paintings back, we’re recognizing our history, we’re restoring the names of bases, as we’ve done across the country, because we’re proud of our history, as difficult as it may have been in some chapters. We’re gonna teach it, we’re gonna live it, and we’re gonna fight for it.”
– Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
Amen to that. Let’s hope that the Arlington monument and the Albert Pike statue are not the last statues to make a comeback, but rather just the beginning of a dramatic reversal.
Source: Fox News
bookmark_borderDisrespect for Italian American heritage in Newton, MA
I haven’t had time to write in depth about the situation in Newton, MA in which the mayor ordered the erasure of red, green, and white stripes down the center of a main road in the city’s predominantly Italian American neighborhood. The mayor, Ruthanne Fuller, claimed that traffic regulations necessitated her actions, and I don’t have enough knowledge to form an opinion on whether or not this is true. But it certainly seems discriminatory to erase the colors of the Italian flag at the same time as communities all across the state and country have been actively painting crosswalks with colors that represent gay and trans people.
In lieu of writing a longer blog post, I am going to share an excellent post from the Italian American Civil Rights League (IACRL), which you can read here.
An excerpt:
“Why is there a push to erase the heritage, the contributions, and the cultural gifts that Italian Americans have given to this country? This isn’t just about paint on a road. This is about erasing history. Dismissing legacy. Silencing pride”
Amen to that.
The IACRL made another post about the community’s response to the erasure, which included attempts by residents to repaint the lines, resulting in one individual being briefly arrested. “What was erased in silence is being restored in unity,” the post notes. I agree with the IACRL that seeing the locals repainting the symbol of their heritage is a beautiful thing indeed. I admire their bravery and spirit.
bookmark_borderA win for Columbus Day in Philadelphia
The good news continues: an order by intolerant, authoritarian former mayor Jim Kenney to abolish Columbus Day in the city of Philadelphia has been overturned by a court. According to Judge Patricia A. McCollough of the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court, the executive order that Kenney signed in 2021 “runs afoul of the separation of powers… and, accordingly, is invalid.”
Source: We The Italians
See also: column by Primo Magazine, with more details and quotes
bookmark_borderA new sign at mega flag site in Alabama
Another piece of positive news: the site of a huge Confederate battle flag in Alabama has been spruced up with a new sign. The flag, along highway I-65 between Montgomery and Birmingham, is maintained by the Prattville Dragoons SCV Camp. It received a new, permanent sign this past weekend after the previous one was destroyed by a storm.
Source: Dixie Forever
More photos can be seen at this Facebook post by the Prattville Dragoons.
bookmark_borderFantastic news on the Albert Pike statue
A truly fantastic piece of news: the statue of Albert Pike, sickeningly attacked and destroyed by vicious bigots on Juneteenth of 2020, will be put back up.
According to the National Review, the National Park Service will be re-erecting the statue in October. “The restoration aligns with federal responsibilities under historic preservation law as well as recent executive orders to beautify the nation’s capital and re-instate preexisting statues,” the NPS said.
It’s not clear exactly where Pike will be going, but this is excellent news indeed. Pike was both a Freemason leader and a Confederate general, and his statue depicts him wearing Masonic garb, making it somewhat unique. The statue had been severely damaged in the disgusting attack and had been held in storage by the NPS. My guess is that repairs have been done on the statue behind the scenes, making him ready for his resurrection.
At the time of the appalling act of intolerance, President Trump called the police’s failure to intervene “a disgrace to our country.” I wholeheartedly agree with him. Trump also personally asked for the statue to be re-erected, but with so many things going on at the time, and with his term nearing an end, he lacked the leverage to make this happen. Five years later, it is happening. Just like me, President Trump never forgot about this statue. This is exactly why I voted for Trump. Pike’s resurrection demonstrates that to President Trump, my perspective matters, my feelings matter, and my life matters.
The images of what was done to the Pike statue on Juneteenth of 2020 are absolutely horrifying and will live in my consciousness forever. Reading the description of what happened – which I will not reproduce here – makes me sick to my stomach, and probably always will. It is completely incomprehensible that a person – let alone multiple people – would choose to do this to a statue. An innocent statue, that never hurt anyone. A statue that signifies people who are different from the norm, and our right to be accepted and included in society. There are no words adequate to the task of fully expressing my hatred of this action and the people who committed it.
(I appreciate the National Review‘s characterization of the perpetrators as “rioters protesting against what they saw as racial injustice.” Emphasis added by me, to point out some very important words that most media outlets do not bother to include, but all should be required to.)
I’ve sustained so much trauma on the subject of statues that any positive news on this topic seems, on some level, too good to be true. But if Pike’s resurrection does indeed come to pass, it means that on this particular statue, the bullies lost.
The bullies, who have no tolerance for anyone different from themselves, no empathy, no regard for others’ perspectives, feelings, viewpoints, or thoughts.
The bullies who chose to celebrate Juneteenth by engaging in a vicious demonstration of intolerance and cruelty.
The bullies whose goal is the obliteration of anyone who is different.
They lost.
And there is nothing more beautiful than that.
PS: Confederate Coffee Company phrased it pretty eloquently as well:
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bookmark_borderRally against Zohran Mamdani’s bigotry
Yesterday the Italian American Civil Rights League held a rally yesterday to protest against NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani’s bigotry. I fully support and agree with the IACRL on this issue and will explain in detail why Mamdani’s words and actions regarding Christopher Columbus are so reprehensible and despicable in a later blog post. For now, here are a few posts about the rally:
View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
Post from the IACRL here.
bookmark_borderKeeping your shoes on at the airport is a significant victory for individual liberty
In a significant step (no pun intended) in the right direction for individual liberty, people no longer have to take their shoes off in order to board an airplane. This announcement was made by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on July 8 and is effective immediately (source here).
“TSA will no longer require travelers to remove their shoes when they go through our security checkpoint,” said Noem. “We’ve gone back and looked at our security processes, looked at the efficacy of everything we do. We’ve evaluated the equipment that every airport has and are fully confident with the no shoes policy that we still have the security needs in place at every checkpoint.”
This is fantastic news. Some might think that whether or not people have to remove their shoes in order to board an airplane is insignificant, petty, or unimportant. Some might consider it silly, or even stupid, for a person to care about this. But I do care about this development. I think it is important and significant. This is a meaningful victory for individual rights, privacy, and liberty, which has taken place under the Trump administration. Thanks to this change in policy, travelers will have a bit more dignity than they had before. And that is something that everyone should celebrate.