CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — A few hundred people have rallied on the campus of North Carolina’s flagship university to demand the removal of a Confederate statue there.
The gathering Tuesday night at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill focused on a statue known as “silent Sam.” People chanted “tear it down” while uniformed officers watched from behind temporary metal barriers ringing the statue, depicting a Confederate soldier.
“Hey, hey. Ho, ho. This racist statue has got to go,” the crowd also chanted.
Several speakers addressed the crowd with a megaphone. One was a university senior Mario Benavente, who said the statue glorifies slavery. “It celebrates the subjugation of black and brown people,” he told the crowd.
One man, standing near the barriers, was seen being led away by officers.
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