White House officials passed a resolution on Tuesday to remove Confederate statues placed in the U.S. Capitol including Roger B. Taney's bust. It will be replaced with one that represents Thurgood Marshall.
Taney was the chief justice responsible for writing the Dred Scott decision while Marshall was the first African American Supreme Court justice in the United States. Lawmakers made a unanimous decision with a 285 to 120 vote. Republicans made up 67 of the supporting votes, while the remaining 218 were Democrats.
Removal of Confederate Statues
Last year, the House passed a similar resolution on a bipartisan basis which was stalled due to Republican resistance in the Senate. They argued that states should be responsible for making the decision of whether or not to remove the statues that should be displayed in the Capitol. But now, with Democrats holding the majority in the Senate, the legislation has more support. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said it was never too late to do the right thing, CNN reported.
The legislation orders the removal and replacement of Taney's bust in the Capitol's old Supreme Court chamber and the removal of statues of volunteers who served the Confederacy against the U.S. during the Civil War. It would also pull out the statues of three elected officials who defended slavery, segregation, and White supremacy in previous administrations: John C. Calhoun, Charles Aycock, and James P. Clarke.
Despite supporting the bill, Republicans said that the Democrats were hypocritical about the contents of the legislation. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy argued that the Democrats represented the South during the Civil War and the Jim Crow era.
Two statues that represent people of historical importance will be contributed by each state. They will be displayed in the Capitol's National Statuary Hall. The individuals in the Capitol include Revolutionary War hero Ethan Allen and disability rights activist Helen Keller, USA Today reported.
Taney's Role in the Dred Scott Ruling
Particularly, lawmakers emphasized the removal of Taney's bust for his role in the infamous "Dred Scott v. Sanford" ruling. The decision denied Black Americans from being labeled as U.S. citizens. In a statement, Hoyer noted Taney's support of the ruling was a major time in the country that represented the tragedy of slavery and racism.
The minority leader said that the honoring of Marshall, who fought for justice and inclusion and to advance the civil rights movement, was more fitting of a spot in the Capitol. Confederate States president between 1861 to 1865 Jefferson Davis and his vice president Alexander Stephens would also have their statues removed, CNBC reported.
Additionally, the legislation orders the architect of the Capitol to provide information regarding other statues or busts that supported or honored the Confederacy. Officials are planning to remove such statues and immediately returned to the states they came from.
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