SPLC’s Lecia Brooks Responds to Trump’s Attempt to Glorify Confederate Past

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Southern Poverty Law Center’s Lecia Brooks released the following statement in response to President Trump’s tweets about how his administration will not change the names of 10 U.S. Army bases that are currently named after Confederate generals.

“Let’s make this clear: President Trump doesn’t have jurisdiction over this matter. His ongoing attempt to glorify symbols of hate has hit a new low. The names of people who betrayed our country have no place in any public land or government installations, especially military bases and installations. 

“This latest attempt to revise a brutal past that exalts white supremacy is abhorrent, but it shouldn't be a surprise to any of us. Since the beginning of his administration, he has used his bully pulpit to divide Americans and wage a war against a new generation who is diverse, passionate, and who belongs in this country as much as those who came here before them.” 

Just yesterday, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) sent letters to the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the Navy, the Secretary of the Air Force, the Commandant of the Coast Guard and the National Guard Bureau Chief urging them to remove Confederate symbols from all of their installations in the U.S. and abroad.

In 2018, the SPLC released an updated version of its Whose Heritage report, identifying nearly 1,800 Confederate monuments, parks, schools, state holidays and other symbols of the Confederacy in public spaces across the South and the nation.