Radicals in Texas have declared war on a nearly 100-year-old statue of Sam Houston, demanding that the statue and “any other landmark that bears the name Sam Houston,” be taken down.
A group calling itself “Texas Antifa” declared on Facebook page saying, “Texans agree the disgusting idols of America’s dark days of slavery must be removed to bring internal peace to our country.” It’s also called on Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner to support its removal, Jake Reiner reports for KPRC 2.
The Antifa group plans to hold a rally on June 10, as its Facebook post claims that “[s]everal large groups of [Black Lives Matter] have also pledged their support for this historic rally against the idols of an oppressive history.” Houston Black Lives Matter told KPRC 2 they had no affiliation with Texas Antifa and were not planning on attending the rally.
The Sam Houston statue was built in 1925 and resides at Hermann Park in the city that bear’s Sam Houston’s name. Houston served as president of the Republic of Texas, and later as senator and governor after Texas was annexed to the United States.
Despite owning 12 slaves, Houston opposed the expansion of slavery into the western territories. He was ousted from the governorship by the Texas legislature for opposing secession and the Confederacy.
It is unclear if the group will demand the city of Houston change its name next.
As of 11:30 a.m. on June 2, 2017, the source of the original story, KPRC, has not issued an update, correction, or retraction. CR will continue to follow this story and provide updates.