Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) says he does not think statues of Confederate leaders should remain in the public square.
During a campaign event on Tuesday, Biden said, “I think all those Confederate monuments to Confederate soldiers and generals, et cetera, who strongly supported secession and the maintenance of slavery and going to war to do it, I think those statues belong in museums, they don’t belong in public places.”
But, he drew a distinction between statues of Confederate leaders and statues of the Founding Founders.
He said, “I think with regard to those statues and monuments like the Jefferson Memorial, I think there’s an obligation that the government protect those monuments. Because they’re different … that’s a remembrance, it is not dealing with revering somebody who had that view.”
“They had much broader views, they may have things in their past that are now and then distasteful, but that is a judgment,” he continued.
Finally, he said, “For example, taking down, toppling Christopher Columbus statues or George Washington statues, et cetera, I think that is something that the government has an opportunity and responsibility to protect from happening.”
Watch the video below:
Joe Biden: "I think all those Confederate monuments to Confederate soldiers and generals, etc, who strongly supported secession and the maintenance of slavery and going to war to do it, I think those statues belong in museums, they don't belong in public places." pic.twitter.com/VyelCVUctH
— American Journal News (@AmerJournalNews) June 30, 2020
Biden’s comments come as officials are re-examining statues of historical figures around the country.
While officials mull what to do with the statues, protesters have torn down or defaced statues of individuals with racist legacies, as IJR reported.
However, some protesters have targeted statues of George Washington and Ulysses S. Grant.
Last week, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to force local governments to protect the statues.