The North Carolina Sons of Confederate Veterans are now the official owners of the controversial Silent Sam statue that once stood on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill. WUNC Daily News Producer Will Michaels joins host Frank Stasio to discuss the terms of a settlement the UNC Board of Governors made with the North Carolina Sons of Confederate Veterans over the Silent Sam statue.
The UNC Board of Governors announced a settlement with that organization last Wednesday and granted them a $2.5 million trust to be used for the care and preservation of the statue. The settlement bars the organization from relocating Silent Sam to any of the 14 counties that have a UNC system school. WUNC Daily News Producer Will Michaels joins host Frank Stasio to discuss the terms of the agreement and the backlash on campus. He will also address a leaked letter that spells out what Sons of Confederate Veterans plan to do with the windfall. Michaels contrasts UNC’s decision with that of neighboring Pittsboro who took down the Confederate monument in front of their historic courthouse despite protests and recently dismissed a lawsuit by the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
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