Reimagining Charlotte’s Commemorative Landscape

By Laura Leftwich, CRC Member and Emily Kunze, City Manager’s Office

The Charlotte Legacy Commission, a 15-person committee appointed by Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles and the City Council, convened in July 2020. The commission was charged with engaging in a comprehensive study of street names and monuments in the City of Charlotte that honor a legacy of Confederate soldiers, slave owners and segregationists. Out of the study, the Legacy Commission provided recommendations and produced a body of research on why their findings are so critical, and so timely.

Consulting with UNC Charlotte’s Dr. Karen Cox and Dr. Willie Griffin, Staff Historian at the Levine Museum of the New South, the Legacy Commission believes that the continued memorialization of slave owners, Confederate leaders, and white supremacists on street signs does not reflect the values that Charlotte upholds today and is a direct affront to descendants of the enslaved and oppressed African Americans who labored to build this city.

Historian Heather Cox Richardson said, “History is about what happened in the past while commemoration is about the present. We put up statues and celebrate holidays to honor figures from the past who embody some quality we admire...as society changes, the qualities we care about shift.”

Following in the footsteps of other major southern cities like Atlanta, an initial priority has been renaming streets associated with the Confederacy. According to the Commission’s official recommendations, street names, “are important because ‘they communicate who matters’; they convey ‘who we are and what we value.’ … They send a dehumanizing message when celebrating and honoring individuals who advocated for discrimination and bigotry.” Taking steps to rename these streets and advocate for the values that Charlotte wants to reflect moving forward is more than reeducating on the past — it’s hoping to set a new path for the future.

The Legacy Commission noted that the community, especially African Americans, were never consulted on street names that revered racism and recommended that new names should be derived from engaging the community. City staff has used extensive engagement in the affected neighborhoods to rename seven streets thus far.

Presently, community engagement is underway to rename Barringer Drive and Stonewall Street. To that end, the commission is conducting public surveys to vote for new names for Barringer Drive and Stonewall Street. The new street names will be effective in May and June, respectively. In addition, the City will support and encourage efforts of neighborhoods and developers that petition for additional street name changes.

“By changing street names and reimagining civic spaces, Charlotte will begin to create a new symbolic landscape representative of the dynamic and diverse city it has become and reflective of the inclusive vision it strives to achieve.” — from the Legacy Commission Recommendations.

The Legacy Commission also calls for reimagining Charlotte’s commemorative landscape to align with the values and diversity of today’s city. City staff are exploring other opportunities to involve the Charlotte community in growing our commemorative landscape, such as a wall with names of enslaved people who lived in Charlotte and providing context for the Confederate monuments and markers in Elmwood Cemetery. There is much more work to be done to implement all the recommendations and Charlotte’s diverse community will be essential to success in creating a more equitable and just future for all residents.