New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is calling for the removal of Confederate Generals’ names from New York City streets.
In a letter to the Secretary of the Army, Cuomo urged the renaming of Stonewall Jackson Drive and General Lee Avenue in Fort Hamilton, Brooklyn.
Read the letter below:
Dear Acting Secretary McCarthy:
On August 7, the U.S. Army denied requests by community leaders and legislators to remove the names of two Confederate Generals from streets on its Fort Hamilton Army Base, claiming that renaming the streets would be “controversial and divisive.” The streets – Stonewall Jackson Drive and General Lee Avenue – are named for leaders in the Confederate army who fought to protect slavery.
Given the events of this week, including the violence and terrorism perpetrated by white supremacists in Charlottesville and the resulting emboldening of the voices of Nazis and white supremacists, I now strongly urge the U.S. Army to reconsider its decision and I call on them to rename these streets.
The events of Charlottesville and the tactics of white supremacists are a poison in our national discourse, and every effort must be made to combat them.
Symbols of slavery and racism have no place in New York. In our state, we condemn the language and violence of white supremacy in no uncertain terms. Unlike President Trump, we stand together to say that there are not many sides to hatred and bigotry; they do not belong in our communities and must be denounced for what they are. Renaming these streets will send a clear message that in New York, we stand against intolerance and racism, whether it be insidious and hidden or obvious and intentional.
Sincerely,
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo