James M. McPherson
The fraught subject of Confederate monuments in prominent public spaces receives the most forthright, well-informed, and unemotional treatment in this book that I have encountered anywhere. Whether or not one agrees with Hartley's argument that these products of the Cult of the Lost Cause symbolizing slavery and White supremacy should be relocated to private land, museums, or Confederate cemeteries, the reader will understand the issue better than ever before.
Kevin M. Levin
More than a history of Confederate monuments, Roger C. Hartley's Monumental Harm steers readers through some of the toughest questions in the debate over whether these monuments should remain or be removed. Anyone hoping to better understand this divisive debate will profit from reading this book.
Thomas J. Brown
The problem of Confederate monuments has been the starting point for a national and international reconsideration of the memorial landscape. Roger C. Hartley's lucid analysis provides a valuable guide to addressing the legacy of the Lost Cause and a framework for thinking about protests against other public monuments.
James M. McPherson James M. McPherson
The fraught subject of Confederate monuments in prominent public spaces receives the most forthright, well-informed, and unemotional treatment in this book that I have encountered anywhere. Whether or not one agrees with Hartley's argument that these products of the Cult of the Lost Cause symbolizing slavery and White supremacy should be relocated to private land, museums, or Confederate cemeteries, the reader will understand the issue better than ever before.
Erika Doss
Monuments to White supremacy have a deleterious impact on American society. Informed by historical accounts, the imperatives of racial justice, and his own legal expertise, Roger Hartley surveys the problematic presence of Confederate monuments in American public spaces and convincingly makes the case for their removal and relocation.
Blain Roberts and Ethan J. Kytle
Constitutional law professor Roger Hartley's book is a clear and practical exploration of the Confederate monuments controversy. A law brief of sorts for the removal of the hundreds of Confederate statues that still stand, Monumental Harm compellingly argues that opponents should pay less attention to monument defenders' motives and instead focus on the very real harm that Confederate statues inflict on American society today. Hartley shows monument opponents how to make their case—and win.