Aug 19, 2017

Saturday Data: Asking To be Arrested

The Confederate Monument at the Alabama Capital.*
     There is no shortage of suspects when it comes to the destruction of a confederate memorial in Durham.
     Though video of people attaching a strap to the statue and then pulling it to the ground only shows a handful of people involved, The Washington Post reports scores of people have lined up at the Sheriff's office confessing. 

"An estimated 200 to 300 people showed up at the sheriff’s office to collectively accept responsibility for the damaged monument, said Courtney Sebring, the Durham County co-chair of the Black Youth 100 Project. Durham County Sheriff Michael Andrews and people live tweeting from the scene estimated the gathering attracted more than 100 participants."

     The tactic is hardly new, but still packs a punch. 
    
      Thousands of people, including children, were arrested in 1960's civil rights protests in Alabama. 
     But when the mayor of Birmingham offered pardons in 2011, some said no thanks. From an AP story:

"...the mayor says he expects many people to refuse to request certificates of pardon because they consider their arrest records to be a badge of courage.

     I'm confident that's a refusal that will be repeated. if and when pardons are offered in the future to the confederate statue protestors.

*That confederate flag is one of the four removed form the monument by former Governor Robert Bentley, himself later removed from office over ethics allegations.

[Saturday Data is a regular feature of www.timlennox.com, celebrating 10 years online this Fall.]

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