Charleston Confederate Monument Vandalized Again — This Time With Obama Quote

A Confederate memorial statue in Charleston, South Carolina, has been vandalized for the second time in less than a month.

On Friday morning, the base of the statue dedicated to “the Confederate defenders of Charleston – Fort Sumter 1861-1865” was found spray painted in black with a quote from President Obama, the Post and Courier in Charleston reported: “The cause for which they fought the cause of slavery was wrong.”

Confederate memorial statue near The Battery in Charleston vandalized again. https://t.co/uI9PGyGWYh pic.twitter.com/lfmrMUMDxM

— dave munday (@dmunday) July 10, 2015

The other side of the monument's base read, “Take down this racist statue,” the paper noted.

In June, the base of the same monument was covered with red spray-painted graffiti, declaring “Black Lives Matter” and “This is the root of our evil.”

At the Confederate Defenders of #Charleston Memorial pic.twitter.com/WQKbQlgIGv

— Lauren Selsky (@LJSelsky) June 21, 2015

The new graffiti is from Obama’s eulogy of the Rev. Clementa Pinckney, pastor of Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, one of nine people shot to death in the church last month.

“Removing the flag from this state’s capitol would not be an act of political correctness; it would not be an insult to the valor of Confederate soldiers," Obama said. "It would simply be an acknowledgment that the cause for which they fought — the cause of slavery — was wrong."

Since the massacre at the historic black church, a national outcry erupted over the display of the Confederate flag and similar symbols. This week the Confederate flag at the South Carolina state capitol was taken down.

More from the Post and Courier:

At 6:20 a.m., a nearby laborer saw a man get inside the railing around the statue and walk to the back, according to an incident report. The man heard a hissing sound and realized it was being spray-painted and called out “Hey!”

The vandal finished the job and ran north on East Bay Street, where the witness quickly lost sight of him. He said the man likely turned onto Atlantic or Water streets.

The vandal was described as a white male with dark hair in his late 20s to mid-30s. He was tall and slender and wore a black T-shirt, black shorts, black ball cap and gold-rimmed glasses. The witness said he could identify the man if he were to see him again.

(H/T: Weasel Zippers)

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