Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, February 7, 1992 TAG: 9202070118
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURENCE HAMMACK and RON BROWN STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
POLICE REMOVE STATUE
A statue that many people consider racially offensive was removed Thursday from the Roanoke police shooting range, but questions remained about why it was placed there.Lt. William Althoff, head of the Police Academy, which conducts training at the range, said the statue has been there "for some time" - long before it was photographed Wednesday as part of a news story on the training of police recruits.
Althoff said the only purpose of the statue was to serve as a prop in training sessions for officers who approach a false-front building in a simulated scene where they must respond to being shot at from the house.
No one has complained about the statue since Althoff took over the Police Academy in the fall, he said. "It was a non-issue until it was published in the newspaper."
However, city officials expressed concerns Thursday about the perception created by the statue - especially at a time when the city is taking steps to improve strained relations between the Police Department and the black community.
"I wouldn't have anything like that in my yard or on city property," City Manager Bob Herbert said. "It is unacceptable and inappropriate."
Herbert said he believes Police Chief M. David Hooper acted appropriately when he ordered that the statue be removed as soon as he learned of its presence.
Still, Herbert worried that the incident would "open old wounds . . . and send the wrong message."
The statues of blacks in colorful riding clothes in recent years have been viewed as symbolic of racism and segregation, particularly in the South, where homes often were decorated with the so-called "lawn jockeys."
Years ago, someone donated the statue to the Police Department, Althoff said. It was placed next to the false-front building - along with a fire hydrant - as an example of something police might encounter on a Roanoke street.
"I can take you to places in the city right now where such items are still on the street," Althoff said.
Although the statue was positioned next to a row of targets used during firearms training, both Hooper and George Snead, city director of administration and public safety, emphasized that it was never used as a target.
While acknowledging that the statue should not have been on the range, some people downplayed its significance.
"To my knowledge, we have never received a complaint about the practice range," said Assistant City Manager Earl B. Reynolds, the city's highest-ranking black administrator. "I personally wouldn't make a big deal about it."
Mary Simpson, a consultant who is conducting cultural awareness training for the Police Deparment, said that although the statue is racially offensive, she thinks controversy over it should not overshadow more important social issues that face police and the entire community.
Hooper said he was unaware of the statue until asked about it Wednesday night. By noon Thursday, the statue was gone - leaving only a square of packed dirt in the grass where it once stood.
Staff writer Joel Turner also contributed to this story.