West Point To Begin Removing Assets Commemorating Confederacy

WEST POINT, NY — The United States Military Academy at West Point will begin remediation of Confederacy-affiliated property and assets.

According to a statement from Lieutenant General Steve Gilland, the superintendent of West Point, a multiphased process will begin during the holiday break “to remove, rename or modify assets and real property” at the military academy and West Point installation that “commemorate or memorialize the Confederacy or those who voluntarily served with the Confederacy.”

Gilland said the directives from the Department of Defense are based on recommendations by the Congressional Naming Commission, which were approved by the secretary of defense in October 2022.

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• Should KKK Plaque At West Point Be Removed? [POLL]
• Commission: Remove Or Rename Confederate Memorials At West Point

A team of stakeholders and experts on the subject matter developed a plan that meets all the commission’s recommendations and complies with DOD directives.

Gilland said, over the holiday break, the academy will:

• Remove the portrait of Robert E. Lee in Confederate uniform from Jefferson Hall and place it in storage. At the same time, the accompanying portrait of Ulysses S. Grant will be moved from the library to Grant Hall.
• Remove the stone bust of Lee at Reconciliation Plaza and place it in storage, while moving the accompanying bust of Grant to the front of Grant Hall.
• Remove the bronze triptych at the main entrance of Bartlett Hall and place it in storage until a more suitable location is determined.

The triptych at the entrance to Bartlett Hall depicts the history of the U.S. As part of the middle panel, which is titled “One Nation, Under God, Indivisible,” there is a small plaque that depicts a man with a hood over his head who is carrying a gun. Underneath the figure are the words “KU KLUX KLAN.”

Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, D-Cold Spring, celebrated the decision to remove the KKK plaque that is on the triptych, as well as removing and renaming property and assets that commemorate the Confederacy.

“On a campus dedicated to educating the future leaders of our nation’s military, there is no suitable location for a symbol of hatred like a plaque immortalizing the Ku Klux Klan,” he said.

“For years, I’ve pushed West Point and our armed forces to remove and rename buildings and monuments related to the Confederacy,” Maloney said, “and I am thrilled to see progress is finally being made.”

Gilland said that, over the next several weeks, in collaboration with the Class of 1957, West Point’s Memorialization, History and Museum Committee will select an appropriate quote about honor to replace the quote from Lee at Honor Plaza. He added that the change should happen by early spring.

Also, in collaboration with the Class of 1961, the stone markers within Reconciliation Plaza that the commission determined commemorated the Confederacy will be reviewed and modified with appropriate language and images that comply with the commission’s recommendations, while still conveying the plaza’s central message of reconciliation. Once the modified language and images are approved, the affected markers will be refaced beginning in early spring.

Gilland said that, lastly, the Memorialization, History and Museum Committee will, by the end of this year, recommend names to replace streets, buildings and areas throughout West Point that are currently named for individuals who served in the Confederacy.

Specifically, they are:

• Lee Road, Beauregard Place and Hardee Place
• Lee Barracks
• Lee Housing Area
• Lee Child Development Center

Once the names are approved, the renaming process will begin in the spring.

Any costs associated with the commission’s recommendations will come from the Department of Defense, Gilland said.

“We will conduct these actions with dignity and respect,” he said. “In the case of those items that were class gifts (specifically, Honor Plaza and Reconciliation Plaza), we will continue to work closely with those classes throughout this process.”