In Small-Town North Texas, Some Confederate Monuments Still Stand Tall
Growing up Black in Kaufman, James Henderson rarely thought about the two-story Confederate monument outside the county courthouse. He didn't care about it much. He didn't really understand what it was. As he grew older and learned about the country's history, his feelings changed over the years, but the final straw came last summer.
Henderson, 44, now works as an investigator in the Kaufman County Public Defender's Office. He walks past the statue several times a week. One day in June, a client of his, a Black man from out of state, asked a question that hit him hard. The man wanted to know how he could expect fair treatment in a building that had a symbol of slavery and segregation perched right out front.
Henderson thought hard for a moment, but he ultimately agreed that the statue's removal was long overdue. “Not in front of a courthouse,” he told the Observer. “Not in front of our justice center, a place that’s supposed to be applying justice. It’s right on our front porch.”
Henderson knew many in Kaufman wouldn’t see things his way. He grew up in town and has considered its mostly conservative residents neighbors for much of his life. Five generations ago, his ancestors lived in Egypt, an all-Black community once located 12 miles southeast of the city. That’s why he feels confident saying the local mantra might as well be “white is right.”
Read more: https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/in-small-town-north-texas-confederate-monuments-still-cast-long-shadows-11988383
