Tearing down historical statues the European edition

[Forogil]

That’s kind of the thing, it seems like tearing down these statues, is teaching people history of those statues, better than them standing there for decades. Look at your post and a large portion of posts on this thread, explaining significance of these monuments. If they were helpful in maintaining or remembering or even learning history, these posts wouldn’t exist.

The existence of ignorance doesn't show that the statues are totally useless.

However, the worrying sign is that the significance is connected to the discussion of the action, if the statues are in fact torn down it seems likely that people will soon be even more ignorant than if the statues stood there.

[Ivanstone]

We do know the Coliseum was used to hold events which involved slaves, from the historical records we have from the Romans themselves. And the pyramids held religious significance. They where not just randomly placed where ever. They also viewed the Pharaohs as a living god in some cases.

Not disagreeing with your overall points however. And there are certainly a lot of things we do not know for sure about history.

But do you know what we actually do know about history? That Confederate statues were erected for the sole purpose of re-writing history to make the CSA and its defenders look better than they were. And they're not the only statues erected to perpetuate lies.

[Felya]

The existence of ignorance doesn't show that the statues are totally useless.

Totally useless and useless in teaching history, are two different things... Imagine how many paper weights a single statue can result in. I’m sure there are even better uses...

However, the worrying sign is that the significance is connected to the discussion of the action, if the statues are in fact torn down it seems likely that people will soon be even more ignorant than if the statues stood there.

If the significance is connected to the discussion of them being torn down, the way to actually have these teach history, is by tearing them down and building them up, in a perpetual cycle... well... until just like these statues the actual event will blend into the background.

I’m sorry, when you have people believing that confederates are heroes defending the union, because they are immortalized in statues. It does the opposite of teaching history... the same ones who built these monuments, are the ones arguing that civil war had nothing to do with slavery. It’s idol worship... and who decides on the idol? The rich confederates that refused to be seen like the bad guys?

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But do you know what we actually do know about history? That Confederate statues were erected for the sole purpose of re-writing history to make the CSA and its defenders look better than they were. And they're not the only statues erected to perpetuate lies.

It’s the same reason Lenin statues were erected in Russia, than promptly destroyed in every state gaining independence.