Seattle mayor calling for removal of Confederate and Lenin statue in Seattle

SEATTLE -- Seattle Mayor Ed Murray is now calling for the removal of the Lenin statue in Fremont and the Confederate memorial in Lake View Cemetery. Murray's statement comes after the Lake View Cemetery on Capitol Hill was shut down Wednesday because of angry messages they received over the Confederate memorial. An online petition has gained more than 4,500 followers asking Murray to remove the memorial. Murray said his office has contacted the cemetery regarding concerns about the memorial. The cemetery is located on private property.

In his statement Thursday, Murray noted on Seattleites expressing frustration over symbols of hate, racism and violence. "Not only do these kinds of symbols represent historic injustices, their existence causes pain among those who themselves or whose family members have been impacted by these atrocities," Murray said. The recent action to remove the statue and memorial comes after a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, left three people dead and dozens injured last weekend. The events in Charlottesville were sparked by a rally against plans to remove a Confederate statue.

Murray added in his statement Thursday that symbols of hate and racism should be removed, no matter what political affiliation they were associated with. "We should never forget our history, but we also should not idolize figures who have committed violent atrocities and sought to divide us based on who we are or where we came from," Murray said.

http://komonews.com/news/local/murray-calls-for-both-lenin-statue-and-confederate-memorial-to-be-removed