/Ole Miss can contextualize Confederate monuments, court finds

Ole Miss can contextualize Confederate monuments, court finds

The unanimous decision was announced Tuesday by the 10-member court. It upheld a decision made by Lafayette County Circuit Judge John Kelly Luther for Ole Miss. The Mississippi Division of Sons of Confederate Veterans claimed that the case should have been heard in chancery court. This was because the group wanted to stop something from happening and chancery court was competent. According to the group, Mississippi law prohibits war monuments from being removed or modified. This includes Civil War-era ones. All arguments made by the Sons of Confederate Veterans were rejected by the Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals ruled that the circuit court was competent to hear the case, and that the Sons of Confederate Veterans were not entitled to file the case. The Court of Appeals’ Judge Tyree Irving stated that “this matter affects public interest” and could only be brought by the attorney general, or a district attorney. We believe that SCV’s members do not have any private right to demand that the University of Mississippi implement its diversity plan. In 2017, the University of Mississippi announced plans to place plaques on monuments and other spots on campus that relate to the Civil War and other cases of racial injustice. Jeffrey Vitter, the University’s Chancellor, stated that contextualization was an extension of universities’ responsibility to educate. It also offers an opportunity to learn history. It is essential that educational institutions foster learning environments and pursue knowledge and understanding. Vardaman Hall is named after James K. Vardaman who was a vocal segregationist and supported the lynchings of African Americans in order to preserve white supremacy. Under the initiative, the building that Vardaman served as U.S. senator from Mississippi and governor in the early 1900s will be renamed. Officials from the university have yet to announce the new name. The plan also includes a plaque detailing the Civil War and slavery, as well as a monument honoring a Confederate soldier. The Court of Appeals’ decision could be appealed at the Mississippi Supreme Court.