We had criticized this plaque being in the jury room in our essay published in the Dallas Morning News.
https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/commentary/2017/08/04/dallas-confederate-memorials-scream-white-supremacy
There had been no reporting of it being removed, but when I got there I could see that it was removed and that there were two holes in the wall left from the screws that had held it in place.
This "Freedom Shrine" is distributed by the Exchange Club which is a national organization.
It is a set of plaques with important documents in American history. There is Lincoln's Proclamation of Emancipation and Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. I am sure some members in the past were whining that the South was being put upon and the Exchange Club stupidly added in Robert E. Lee's letter of acceptance to be the president of Washington College.
These "Freedom Shrines" are all across the nation in public buildings and likely in every state in the nation. Removing the Robert E. Lee plaque from a jury room is an obvious thing to do. It can be asked to be removed as being a thing that biases jurors.
Next time you see a "Freedom Shrine" look at it and see if there is a Robert E. Lee plaque included.
The Exchange Club still included the Robert E. Lee letter in their Freedom Shrine display. It is item No. 19 here.
https://members.nationalexchangeclub.org/sites/default/files/attachements/30-PieceFreedomShrineArrangements.pdf
It is also in their 20 piece collection which you can see here. It is item No. 19
https://members.nationalexchangeclub.org/sites/default/files/attachements/20-PieceFreedomShrineArrangement.pdf
Why is the Exchange Club still including Robert E. Lee in a Freedom Shrine in 2018? They are an out of touch white club. I am sure they have some African American members who I am sure will come to their defense.
This could be a starter project for any effort to de-Confederate your city. A small victory is encouragement to go after larger projects.
Also, each of these plaques in a government building legitimizes the Confederacy and their removal de-legitimizes the Confederacy and Confederate monuments. So removing these plaques also helps in removing other Confederate items.
Most importantly though is that we need to take the Confederacy out of the criminal justice system.
BEFORE AT THE COURT HOUSE
AFTER
CLOSE UP You can see the drill holes.
