‘We’re not going away’ say protesters demanding removal of Weatherford Confederate statue
About 30 protesters continued to demand a Confederate statue be removed from the Parker County courthouse lawn on Monday evening.
Passing cars and trucks occasionally honked at the group, which held signs in front of the statue in Weatherford square. Drivers yelled out their windows, sometimes in support and other times in condemnation.
“Go home!” one woman yelled.
“I love you!” Another woman declared, giving the group a thumbs up.
Last week, rumors on social media spread about a massive Black Lives Matter protest planned for Saturday. In response, about 100 counter-protesters circled the square on Saturday — but the rumors proved to be false.
Tony Crawford, one of the organizers of the Parker County Progressives, said the group waited until Monday to protest because “protests are meant to be a little bit uncomfortable” but “we do not want conflict.”
A handful of people who showed up across the street from the courthouse Monday night in opposition to the protesters also said they did not want conflict. A woman who gave her name as “Piper” said they just wanted to make sure the protesters did not destroy anything. “Piper” held a sign that said, “Most of the citizens of Weatherford have spoken. History remains. Honk if you agree.”
She also said they do not want a repeat of the July 25 protest, during which police arrested two people.
For weeks, Parker County Progressives have publicly called for the statue, which is of a nonspecific Confederate soldier, to be moved. They have faced opposition from some community members, who say the statue is part of the town’s history. Parker County Judge Pat Deen said the statue would be moved, only to go back on his announcement in a unanimous vote with county commissioners.
Crawford said Deen’s vote felt like “a stab in the back.”
“We’re not going away,” Crawford said. “We’re in this for the long haul until this statue goes away.”
He said Black community members have had an issue with the statue for a while.
“But we’re in a place where we’re 2-3% (of the population) though, does anybody really hear us?” he said. “With all the situations going on, we kind of found out we had a lot more support in this area than we thought.”
Brothers Michael Gray and Tyler Gray said the statue only reminds them of everything that was done to their ancestors. The two have lived in Weatherford all their lives, and their ancestors were slaves in Parker County. Two of their relatives were lynched on the very lawn they stood on, they said.
The brothers, who are both 22 years old, said they do not want the statue destroyed, only removed and given context.
“We’re not changing history,” Michael Gray said. “We’re really here to educate.”
Tyler Gray said he recently bought a gun for the first time because of the amount of death threats his family has received.
“To a certain extent, this is not surprising,” he said. “My ancestors went through the same thing.”
Carmen Chapa and her 14-year-old son, Isaac, also joined the protest. Chapa said the statue does not represent the citizens of Weatherford, and was built to intimidate people of color.
In regards to the death threats that members of the group has received, she said she worries for her son, who is Black.
“You pray differently for a Black son,” she said.
This story was originally published August 11, 2020 at 5:30 AM.
