By Chris Roberts
Today I read the comments of Roy Cooper and it is the most heartbreaking and despicable comment ever to be uttered by a governor of North Carolina. Your call for the removal of monuments to the Confederate soldiers from North Carolina is beyond belief. These are NOT monuments to those as you put it “who wished to keep her ancestors in chains” and the fact that you don’t realize that is both revealing and incredibly sad. These monuments were part of the collective grief of the people of North Carolina for the 36,000 men from our home that died in that war. Say what you will about those that lead the way into the struggle, but these men did nothing more than answer the call of their state to defend their homes and families. This is not some sentimental drivel of someone not informed about history. Rather is the accurate assessment of someone that has spent more than 35 years in intensive study about this period in history and has read their letters and journals detailing what was in their hearts and minds. These letters tell of their love for those at home, their fears for what they faced, and how they were willing to lay down their lives for those that meant so much to them. They spoke not of hate but instead of their hopes and dreams and a trust that God would see them through this great trial.
The fact that you are so bereft of any sense of self-sacrifice or honor no doubt is what leads you to these vile and reckless statements. The very thought that you would call for the removal of memorials to the dead of this state demonstrates the decay of your morality sir. These men were North Carolinians and for us native to this state, they were flesh of our flesh and bone of our bone. You sir are attacking the very memory of our families and are no better than those that find it funny to overturn gravestones. How dare you think that you have the right to attack the memory of these soldiers! You who, for mere political gain, would throw away the history and heritage of your state. I can only imagine the dismay of those sons and daughters from North Carolina currently serving in our military. They stand ready to defend our country, our state, and their families if called. They know that, if they should fall defending all of us, that we will remember and honor their memory. That is unless spineless politicians like Roy Cooper later decide that someone is offended by their memory or it would buy him more votes. In which case Roy Cooper would discard them as quickly as he wishes to discard the memory of others soldiers who fell defending North Carolina.
I am not a person who carries any hate in my heart and I have always sought to honor and remember ALL of those that paved the path to the present regardless of their race. We will never be able to come together as a people by putting down the history and heritage of part of us but rather only by lifting up all that is worthy of all groups. We, as adults, SHOULD have no problems extracting from every person of history all that is good and worthy of remembrance while, at the same time, recognizing what qualities should be left behind as a reminder to never make those mistakes again. These memorials to these soldiers do all of these things and serve as reminders, both of self-sacrifice but also of the price to be paid when violence overcomes all.
Today I am ashamed to have Roy Cooper as governor of this great state. I will do all in my ability to work toward a future where he never again holds any position of leadership. Nothing of value in this state is safe from a man who would sacrifice all for his own self-interest. At the end of the day, what is clear is that the memory of the soldiers of North Carolina will continue to be remembered and honored for countless years to come, while this pathetic politician will be quickly forgotten.