Heated exchanges unfold during weekend protest over Confederate monument in Murray

Conversations on whether to remove Confederate monuments are continuing across the nation.
A 24-hour protest in Murray, to move the Confederate statue on Court Square, began at 6 p.m. Friday and ended at 6 p.m. Saturday, according to a Paducah television station.
It was organized by Sunrise Movement Murray and Murray State College Democrats, WPSD reported. Their goal was to have at least five people...
Constance Alexander: Discussing the topic of race relations means not hitting the snooze button

On June 25, the Murray City Council voted unanimously to recommend to the Calloway County Judge-Executive that the statue of a Confederate soldier in the likeness of General Robert E. Lee — which has commandeered the courthouse square since 1917 – be removed from the courthouse property and relocated to an appropriate venue.
Three weeks later another unanimous resolution passed; this one signed...
Constance Alexander: What we are actually talking about when we talk about race

The other night, the City Council of Murray unanimously passed a resolution recommending to the Calloway County judge-executive that the statue of a Confederate soldier – in the likeness of General Robert E. Lee – be removed from the courthouse property and relocated to an appropriate venue.
In the discussion leading up to the vote, council member Alice Rouse emphasized the difference between removing...
Constance Alexander: Embracing poetry a good start to evaluating our values, beliefs on diversity

“Those Winter Sundays“ begins with a description of a father who gets up early, even on the day of rest. He gets dressed “in the blueblack cold,” his cracked hands aching from the weekday work he does to make a living; nevertheless, he still makes sure the house is warmed for the still-sleeping family.
His child wakes to the sound of, “the cold splintering, breaking,” and half-heartedly...