UNC Athletes Petition Against Confederate Statue

RALEIGH — More than 100 current and former North Carolina student-athletes have signed an open letter condemning the university's recent proposal to put the Silent Sam statue in a new $5.3 million building on campus.

Among those on the list opposing the Confederate monument are current basketball and football players. They include forward Garrison Brooks, a UNC starter, and guard Kenny Smith; running backs Michael Carter and Jordon Brown; and starting offensive lineman William Sweet.

"A monument to those who fought and killed to keep Black people enslaved has no place on our campus," the letter read. "White supremacy has no place on our campus."

The letter is one of more than 20 statements released recently in support of the effort to keep Silent Sam off campus, including one Wednesday in which faculty members asked parents and guardians of students for support.

The proposal for the statue was approved by UNC's Board of Trustees, and is expected to go before the UNC System's Board of Governors today at the Friday Center.

Under the plan, the statue would be placed in a new history center on the edge of campus that will cost $5.3 million and $800,000 a year to operate. It could be paid for with state money, according to UNC Chancellor Carol L. Folt, and will have state-of-the-art security.

Silent Sam has sparked multiple protests around campus, including an Aug. 20 rally in which protestors brought the statue down.

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