Statue of Limitations

Erecting of statues seems to be a human norm.
From pretty much every era, the statue, provides a civilisation a bookmark to commemorate the stature of their progress.
The luxury of using resources, to put together art, in the form of whatever material is befitting.
Whether it is gold, silver, bronze, concrete, marble or plaster, a statue is a creation to stand prominently, to decorate ,& bookmark history, express a message, exude flattery, gradiosity, ego, community, solidarity or differences.

statue
/ˈstatjuː,ˈstatʃuː/
noun: statue; plural noun: statues
a carved or cast figure of a person or animal, especially one that is life-size or larger.

History, Memory, Values ...

If you disagree with a statue existing, and want to pull it down because it seems to be offensive, to today's point of view. Maybe, we should keep in mind that many of the statues around the world, in today's context, could be viewed as against our current, modern, looking glass.

Take for example religious statues, cannibalistic totems, statues made by former friendly nations, and so forth. Do we rip down centuries of statues just to cleanse the world from a projected pain?
I say, projected pain, as most of the current, "former slaves", have probably not been slaves for generations. Maybe, that oppression, has affected the generation of today. Maybe, we need to take a breath. To consider, that by removing a blight from our eyes, that we are not just allowing it to breathe, in another form in the future?
Same goes with book burning, hate groups, and negative mindsets. To not be aware of them will just cause history to repeat at some point. To air them, the light of logic and argument can cleanse them naturally.

But we cannot support/agree/allow them to have a place of prominence.

Yes, that is a fair statement.
The analogy I read was, would you put a statue up, of a kidnapper, if they stole your children?
The answer, logically, would be, "No".
But, slavery was acceptable behaviour in our history. Many great leaders were operating within the limitations of that societies mindset.
Imagine, in 50 years, if the, environment, takes its proper place in importance. That, all the statues we erect now, would most likely be brought down due to, "crimes against the planet earth".
Or, if we evolve, and mature, beyond consumptionism, statues of great capitalists, would be pulled down for, "bringing out the worst in the human spirit and greed".
The same for military people if we learn to live without conflict.

The march of humanity enabled these statues to be erected for a particular reason, based on a certain mindset, at a certain point in time.

Yes, maybe the Confederates wanted to win the Civil War by brainwashing its future generations.
The fact, that they are still reeling from the loss, shows a spirited group, who were not willing to give up.
I'm loathe to pull down a created object. It is a time stamp of our species, which goes alongside all of the other creations made, by cultures, over tens of thousands of years.

We reap what we sow

American soldiers were involved in the pulling down of Saddam's statue.

Colonial powers (and other cultures) have torn down the past of peoples they conquered.
Religions have done the same as well. So, maybe, they are just receiving back some of the karma from what they imposed upon others.

Who gets to make the decisions? Do statues really matter?

Well, symbology does. Every prominent country, royalty, army, religion, culture, company and club, creates banners, flags, mottos, slogans, brands, to manipulate, I mean, influence, the intended audience.

So, maybe, there is a power game. Maybe, the statue is there to manipulate & influence the population. The people that want to pull down monuments & statues have a point, to reinforce getting their own point across.

I mean, ISIS, tore down ancient monuments to erase the past - so, why not, mask wearing, protestors?
Is there a difference between a 100 year old statue, and a site from the 3rd millenium?

Palmyra is an ancient archaeological site located in modern-day Syria. Originally founded near a fertile natural oasis, it was established sometime during the third millennium B.C. as the settlement of Tadmor, and it became a leading city of the Near East and a major trading post on the Silk Road.

Those in power made the laws

It was interesting to hear, President Donald Trump, say that there have been 100's of arrests, particularly, of people who desecrated statues & monuments.

He went on to say, that they have a Monument Act, which protects statues.

Now, how about for the good ol' Australia, do we have one?

Sure enough, just like our colonial masters, England, saw how important monuments are to the psyche of an empire, while, also preserving ancient monuments.

Laws can be double edged, as it can allow, those in power, to control something of value. Such as, the Museums in England, to keep ancient Egyptian artifacts.
Although, that would have been a good place to keep, Iraqi antiquities, as many were looted from there when the country collapsed

In Australia, we use Heritage listing, to ensure historical preservation.

2.6 Perhaps the most important threat to the protection and maintenance of our commemorative places and monuments is their position in the public consciousness. The recent vandalism of statues portraying historic figures has brought such monuments into the spotlight and made them the focus of discussion about their role in representing current community values.

2.7 Colonial monuments, particularly those commemorating early explorers and administrators, are a reflection of a point in time that was almost exclusively focussed on values of settlers. They represent what was believed and understood, and what the society and government aspired to. Monuments of the colonial era were often large scale, solid and imposing statues memorialising values of exploration, courage, community building and innovation. source

Narrative may change

The person represented in a statue normally has historical, mythological, artistic or whatever motivation behind it.

I guess that most of my life I didn't really pay attention statue, or monument, was in a park.
I just assumed that they had to put something in it. Why not a historical figure?
You can always change the narrative as points of view change. The statue is still the same.
The first few centuries will be that Capt Cook was a great guy.

2.8 European settlers were embarking on a new life in a new land, with fear of the unknown likely to have been an ever present undercurrent. Monuments are akin to a marker of society’s thinking at the time - its past, and aspirations for the future. Newspaper coverage of the unveiling of the Captain James Cook statue in Hyde Park in 1879 provides an insight into the values being memorialised:
(The procession, of 12,000) was the largest ever seen in Sydney. The ceremony was witnessed by
about 60,000 people. Two hundred children sang the National Anthem. His Excellency the Governor,
Sir Hercules Robinson, unveiled the statue; and; in doing so, made a speech, in which he gave a narrative of Cook’s life, and characterised him as a humane, just, and God-fearing man. He added
that it would be well for the youth of Australia to imitate his nobility of character.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate (NSW), 26 February 1879

But, maybe now, we can see a bit more of the, darker side, of our, Captain Cook.
The fact that we can share more than just one narrative, or that, we should be able to share more than one narrative, means we can cast, both the light, and the dark, and all the shades of grey, in between, to give a truly, humane perspective, of our flawed species.

My verdict: Don't tear it down

I'm not for the destruction of something that was created.
You can put them in museums, if you must. But, it reflects more upon us, than just being offended, or to have birds poop upon them.

If people are so angry. Tears of hurt. It is a good time to digest what is it that is really making us angry?
A statue of a Colonial figure? In today's world, we are far beyond sailing ships, muskets, colonisation & slavery.

Or, are we?

Is, Colonialism, just replaced with, Corporatism?
Is, Slavery, replaced with, Indebtness & Salary?

Perhaps, we need to reevaluate how our society is functioning?

With so many displaced, & broken, soul. Do we need to re-engineer ourselves for a smaller world, increasing technology, continual communication, endorphin driven click bait, 5 second memories, manipulative news cycles, identity crisis, and issues from individuals, familes, groups, races, cultures, countries, religions are all trying to work it out?

No tattoo, No statue

I'd never get a tattoo because I don't value any image to put upon my person.
The same as, I would never erect a statue, as there would be nothing I would want to stay erect for so long ... (that's what she said).

Maybe if it was cardboard.

Talented people, visionary people, historians and so forth - go for it, enjoy. Create to your heart's content.
However, if there are still people in our community, who are unable to fulfill the basics of food, clothing & shelter, then, I'd say, that we have more work to be done before we start erecting, to self aggrandising.

(other images from Google Image Search)