We urge Mayor Saffo and the City Council of Wilmington to stop any efforts to remove monuments from the City of Wilmington.
 
The George Davis Monument and the Boney Monument, designed by renowned artists Francis Herman Packer and Henry Bacon, are prime examples of the City Beautiful Movement that swept across our nation in the early 20th century.  Both monuments are listed in the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Art Inventories Catalog. 
 
A highly organized group funded by deep pockets of dark money is pushing for the removal of these and other monuments across the country.   They are striking now after a week of organized, nation-wide riots has left our country helpless and flat on its back.
 
This destruction of monuments is strikingly similar to the destruction of South Vietnamese monuments by Ho Chi Minh.
 
“When Ho Chi Minh’s forces from the North conquered South Vietnam, the first thing they did was remove historical statues JUST to show the people ‘We can do anything to you and there is nothing you can do about it.  And we can remove YOU if you don’t behave.’ Then, they closed media outlets and then they took all firearms from the people.
 
“I know this because I was there and watched the Communists inflicted their will on us without any remorse or second thoughts.  The result was a totalitarian state where the people in charge made sure you knew it every day and 24 hours per day,” describes Matt Truong, Vietnam survivor.
 
Mayor Saffo and the City Council need to be on the right side of history.  We need you to stand against anarchy.  We need you to stand against a very loud mob and against the destruction of our city’s art, history, and culture.
 
Wilmington Mayor Walter G. MacRae said it best when he accepted the George Davis Monument on behalf of the City on April 20, 1911: “We receive the Statue with pride, and shall count it among the city’s most precious possessions.”
 
Mayor Saffo, you are now charged with the protection of our precious possessions.  We urge you not to follow the example of Ho Chi Minh, Isis, the Taliban, Mao Zedong, and Stalin.
 
Preserve our Wilmington monuments for all the citizens who are not being given a voice.  Preserve our culture and history for future generations.
 
-Residents of Wilmington and their Allies