Council Unanimously Supports Resolution Declaring Black lives matter

During the July 6 Charleston City Council meeting, all 26 Council Members unanimously adopted a resolution declaring that Black lives matter and reaffirming anti-discrimination policies throughout the City of Charleston. The resolution also proclaimed support for community members that have engaged in peaceful protests against acts of racism, injustice and inequality.

“The City of Charleston is a place that should be inclusive of all,” said Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin. “Council felt that is was important to stand up as one and say that we support all our citizens and their right to peacefully protest.” 

Charleston City Council also voted to loan or donate the Kanawha Rifleman Memorial, formerly in Ruffner Park, to a West Virginia history museum where it can be preserved and presented in historical context. The City of Charleston removed the monument, erected in 1922 by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, on Monday, June 29.

“Monuments like this should be housed in museums where they can be interpreted more readily in their historic context,” said Goodwin. “Removing this monument is a step forward in making our Capital City a welcoming and inclusive place for all.”

The City of Charleston has offered to donate the monument to the Craik-Patton House Museum. The Kanawha Riflemen was formed by George Smith Patton, one of the namesakes of the Craik-Patton House. By offering this donation, the City recognizes that the history of the Civil War should not be erased and that a museum setting where history can be explained in context is a far better place for the monument.

The resolution also requested that the Charleston Historic Landmarks Commission prepare a proposal regarding a new monument to present the history of Ruffner Park.

“This park has seen so much over the years and I look forward to working with the City of Charleston to help bring the history of Ruffner Park to life,” said Billy Joe Peyton, Professor of History at West Virginia State University and Chair of the Charleston Historic Landmarks Commission. “History is not always pretty but moving the Kanawha Riflemen Memorial monument to a museum setting will allow it to be studied with the proper context and provide a new canvass for the story of Ruffner Park to be told in a historically accurate manner.”