RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A group of protesters has added a plaque honoring George Floyd to a Confederate monument that sits on the grounds of the North Carolina state Capitol.
The group, which goes by the name “Raleigh United,” placed the gold plate over the existing inscription on the base of the 75-foot (23-meter) monument on Wednesday, news outlets reported.
The new addition covers the words “To our Confederate dead,” and reads, “In honor of George Floyd.” A message below reads, “We recognize the breakdown and the build-up that brought us together, and the change that has been put into motion.”
The action came during ongoing demonstrations calling for racial justice that were sparked by the death of Floyd, a handcuffed black man who died two weeks ago after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee on his neck for more than eight minutes as he pleaded for air.
Protesters in North Carolina have joined those across the country in gathering around Confederate monuments during such demonstrations, and groups in other cities have even toppled the statues, which many say remain a symbol of racism.
In Raleigh, the monument continues to stand, but the words “Take this down” and “Black Lives Matter” had been scrawled across it ahead of the plaque being mounted this week.
Raleigh United organizer Asher Gannon told The News & Observer that the plaque serves as a “glimpse of the future.”
“We want people to drive by and have hope for change,” he said.
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