Silent Sam, the controversial confederate monument that stood on the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s campus is gone.
Demonstrators initially gathered last night in support of UNC-Chapel Hill graduate student Maya Littlewho faces criminal charges for defacing the statue. Hours later demonstrators pulled down Silent Sam with ropes as an estimated 250 protesters surrounded the site. Removal crews arrived later to collect the toppled statue using pulleys and a backhoe.
Silent Sam was part of the university's landscape for more than 100 years and has been contentious for decades. Host Frank Stasio speaks with WUNC Managing Editor Dave DeWitt who was at the scene last night.