In December of 2020, Rep. Don Beyer introduced a bill to rename “Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial,” by removing Lee’s name. A few days before, Lee’s statue was removed from the US Capitol. Denise Meringolo, a public history professor at the University of Maryland in Baltimore discusses the history behind these changes. She will discuss when and why the Confederacy and its generals were memorialized and some of the philosophical and historical questions concerning what individuals and communities can do about it today.
Professor Meringolo teaches courses in community-based public history practice, museums and material culture, and digital public history. Her book “Museums, Monuments, and National Parks: Toward a New Genealogy of Public History” (University of Massachusetts, 2012) won the 2013 National Council on Public History prize for the best book in the field. She is also a member of the National Council on Public History Governance Committee.
This virtual event was recorded on February 11, 2021 as one of the monthly series of lectures hosted by the Arlington Historical Society.