PRESS RELEASE
RALEIGH, N.C. May 4, 2021 – With support from local NAACP chapters, Paynter Law will be representing a diverse coalition of residents and citizens in Iredell County in a lawsuit filed against Iredell County, the County Board of Commissioners, and the Commissioners themselves, seeking the removal of the Confederate Monument that currently stands in front of the Iredell County Government Center in Statesville. The lawsuit alleges that the monument celebrates slavery, secession, and white supremacy, poses a threat to public safety, and violates multiple provisions of the North Carolina Constitution.
Residents in Iredell County have long called for the removal of the statue and in March 2021, the County Board of Commissioners appeared to agree with this sentiment. Recognizing the pain Black residents of Iredell County felt in the face of the monument, the Commissioners voted to remove it, admitting that it “occupied a prominent position in front of the justice system during a period of Jim Crow laws, segregation and endemic discrimination against African-Americans,” and that, for Black residents, the monument “continues to serve as a reminder of policies of oppression, having their roots in the system of slavery that existed in the Confederate States of America.” However, the Board of Commissioners has walked back on their commitment to remove the monument, triggering the need for this lawsuit.
Plaintiffs include Christopher A. “Skip” McCall, Reverend Robert Wright Lee IV, the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, the NAACP Statesville Branch, the NAACP South Iredell Branch, and the Iredell Clergy for Healing and Justice organization. Plaintiff’s legal team will consist of the Paynter Law Firm alongside the Parker Law Offices, O’Melveny & Meyers LLP, Hampton Dellinger, and Tin Fulton Walker & Owen.
The complaint is available HERE for download.
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With offices in Washington, D.C. and North Carolina, Paynter Law is devoted to protecting the rights of individuals, with a focus on high-stakes personal injury litigation, civil rights litigation, complex commercial cases, intellectual property disputes, and antitrust litigation. More information available at www.paynterlaw.com