Stuart Sumner: Honor Silent Sam elsewhere

We honor our dead, wounded and returning soldiers, not because of the righteousness of the cause but for the sacrifice they made. They went into battle because we sent them. They fought for the soldier to the left and to the right. It is right that we recognize them for their devotion to country and comrade.

We honor the World War II veteran equally with the Vietnam, Iraqi and Afghanistan war veteran. We honor the soldier and not the war.

We honor the young, idealistic, immortal soldier who fought because we sent him If we sent him for wrong, our representatives and we deserve the curse of history, not him.

So, let us not curse the lonely Confederate soldier who stands at the entrance of the University of North Carolina. He was young, naive and misled, but he was sent by his state to sacrifice for it.

That said, it is not fitting that a great public university has a symbol of war at its entrance. Donate Silent Sam to an institution whose mission is to tell the soldier’s story.

Replace Sam with a monument that celebrates the contributions of education to the march of civilization as it struggles to eradicate human suffering in all its forms.

Let’s send Silent Sam to a place designed to recognize and honor his sacrifice.

This story was originally published May 14, 2015 at 5:53 PM with the headline "Stuart Sumner: Honor Silent Sam elsewhere."