Throughout history, people have helped America become the world power it is today. Changing history can include leading an army, becoming president, or simply changing the way people think. In order to represent the people who have changed societies, statues are often put in their name to be sure people don’t forget their history.

However, throughout the past year of 2017, riots have become quite popular and have resulted in people protesting statues. Some of the statues protested have been people like Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis who are notorious for being a part of the Confederacy. The real question is, why do people want these statues to come down?

Most of the statues being protested are Confederate statues. The statues represented the worst of America: rebellion and slavery. It makes sense that people don’t want to honor those statues that represented such a terrible time in America.

Statues, in general, are created for people throughout history. They are part of America’s identity and culture. They are used to represent times of bad and good. They focus on the strength and unity that brought America to one country. However, when it represents something as terrible as slavery, should it get taken down?

Where is the line drawn as to what constitutes enough protests that a statue should get taken down? How many people have to get hurt in order to take down these statues? Do riots have to form for the government to listen?

In San Antonio, Texas, in the early hours of the morning of Sept. 1, workers came and removed confederate statues from Travis Park after more than 100 years of being in the park. Is this just the beginning? Do we start taking down all statues with a bad past? Where does the bad end and the good start?

Common arguments include talking about George Washington and how he owned slaves as well. Although he isn’t known for having slaves, many people feel that he should also have all statues taken down like Lee and Davis. Although, without Washington, our country would not be what it is. He became our first president and set a foundation for years to come. Does that allow all of the bad things he has done to be overlooked?

Nobody is perfect and therefore has made mistakes. How many mistakes and ethical errors does a person have to make before people consider everything about them and brings up the bad past that we always try to forget about? The line has never been specified and there needs to be regulations. America has had its fair share of terrible times and people need to decide when those bad times led to enough good things.

The bottom line is ethics. Ethics allow people to accurately rate every choice a person made. Together, society steps towards a brighter future. Sometimes, that involves getting rid of the painful, unethical past. Not everything in the past needs to be forgotten. That’s how a new future starts. A person has to know where they’ve been to know where they’re going. The statues stand as a symbol, it just depends on what Americans want that symbol to be: freedom or chaotic failure.