Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

mahatmakanejeeves

(57,446 posts)
Tue Dec 7, 2021, 08:59 PM Dec 2021

Nathan Bedford Forrest Has Fallen

SpeakerOfTheHat Retweeted

United States conservatives howl with rage at desecration of Heritage Art.



FEATURED

Nathan Bedford Forrest Has Fallen

A widely mocked Nashville statue of the early KKK leader was removed Tuesday morning

D. PATRICK RODGERS 9 HRS AGO

The Confederacy has fallen. Again.

A notorious statue of Confederate general and early KKK leader Nathan Bedford Forrest that has stood beside I-65 in Crieve Hall for more than two decades has now been removed. The statue — a frequent source of mockery and vandalism — was sculpted by Jack Kershaw. Though visible from the interstate, the eyesore sat on the private Hogan Road property of a man named Bill Dorris, who once said of Kershaw, “As an artist, mediocre.”

Dorris died a little more than a year ago and made national headlines for designating a $5 million trust to his border collie Lulu upon his death. (You read that correctly, yes.) A source at the time told the Scene that the estate was valued at closer to half a million dollars.

As reported Tuesday morning by NewsChannel 5’s Nick Beres: “The executor of the will ordered for the statue removed early Tuesday morning. … It will be held in storage and possibly be put up for sale. For now, the flags will remain at the site.”

{snip}
6 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Nathan Bedford Forrest Has Fallen (Original Post) mahatmakanejeeves Dec 2021 OP
Time for this one to go too Botany Dec 2021 #1
Absolutely!!!! MyOwnPeace Dec 2021 #2
I've been there, that's really an amazing rock Shermann Dec 2021 #4
This is awesome news Docreed2003 Dec 2021 #3
Maybe they can return it to Trader Joe's? nt Shermann Dec 2021 #5
It was one of a kind. mahatmakanejeeves Dec 2021 #6

Docreed2003

(16,858 posts)
3. This is awesome news
Tue Dec 7, 2021, 09:31 PM
Dec 2021

You cannot imagine just how awful this monstrosity was without seeing it in person. It's about time it came down!!

mahatmakanejeeves

(57,446 posts)
6. It was one of a kind.
Wed Dec 8, 2021, 09:28 AM
Dec 2021

Sat Dec 7, 2019: Hey Thanks, Forrest-Statue Vandals

PHOTO: DANIEL MEIGS

Instead of a strong symbol of white power, motorists are now treated to a pink cartoon character


Hey Thanks, Forrest-Statue Vandals,

I never thought I’d say this, but thank you very much, unnamed practitioners of vandalism.

Two years ago, some folks thought the Nathan Bedford Forrest statue, which sits alongside I-65 in Crieve Hall, needed a refresher, so they hit it with coats of pink paint. That statue has been controversial since it went up in 1998, because unlike the bust of Forrest in the state Capitol — which soft-pedals its racism — this 25-foot monstrosity depicting Forrest on horseback was expressly created to be a symbol of white power. Defenders of the Capitol bust at least have the misguided sense to fall back on old chestnuts like “Forrest quit the Klan” and “he was a military hero.” But when Bill Dorris erected his statue, he was clear that it was a symbol of white supremacy, ringing it with flags of the Confederacy.

For years, I have driven past that statue and stewed over its stupidity. Even Dorris has admitted that it’s mediocre and that the design, by noted racist Jack Kershaw, is not very good. I think it looks like Lord Farquaad from Shrek. Others have suggested that it resembles The Princess Bride’s Count Rugen. But symbols often derive power from their commitment to the cause — and there was the Forrest statue, sword raised defiantly every day, a persistent troll to the changing world around it.

When vandals painted it pink, I figured Dorris would clean up the statue, but he didn’t. Instead, he told the media that he hoped it would draw more attention to it. His friend Kershaw once told The Times-Picayune in New Orleans that “somebody needs to say a good word for slavery,” so it’s clear that’s what he was trying to glorify.

Read more: https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/cover-story/article/21103194/hey-thanks-forreststatue-vandals

Hey Thanks, Forrest-Statue Vandals

Instead of a strong symbol of white power, motorists are now treated to a pink cartoon character

STEVE CAVENDISH NOV 27, 2019



Photo: Daniel Meigs

{snip}
Latest Discussions»Region Forums»Tennessee»Nathan Bedford Forrest Ha...