Monuments: If House passes measure, it would have to come back to Senate
sent him an email saying the measure was “vitally important considering the trend toward attacking any historical figure that does not conform to current day politically correct standards.”
Holt said the bill appears to be intended to halt any effort to roll back commemorations of Confederate generals.
“I can imagine no other practical purpose for it,” Holt said.
“What American historical figures are under attack except for possibly Confederate generals? And I think if local governments want to revise things, they should have every right to do so.”
He also questioned the practicality of placing state restrictions on the names of buildings or on the relocation of monuments.
He also said it’s not just a theoretical question as it could involve numerous structures. For example there are schools named after Confederate General Robert E. Lee.
In southwest Oklahoma City, Lee Elementary School is named after the famous general, said Marionette Gibson, interim principal.
Stand Watie Elementary School in south Oklahoma City is named for the last Confederate general to surrender in the Civil War.
The bill would allow local government to petition the Oklahoma Historical Society for a waiver from having to comply.
Two public hearings would be required on the request.
Rep. Dustin Roberts, R-Durant, said the measure was altered to be more inclusive of all military conflicts and wasn’t specifically directed to the Confederacy.
He said a group approached him and said under the previous version, important conflicts, including the American Revolutionary War, would not be included.
“It just covers all wars now,” he said.
He said he doesn’t see a problem that it would also cover the Civil War.
Sen. Frank Simpson, R-Ardmore, the Senate author of the bill, said he has concerns with the way it has been changed and preferred the previous version, covering conflicts that took place after Oklahoma became a state.
“It was narrow and specific and not open to interpretation,” he said.
If the House ends up passing the bill, it would have to come back to the Senate for another vote.