George Washington Statue Covered to Prevent Martin Luther King Celebrants From Being Offended-Fiction!

George Washington Statue Covered to Prevent Martin Luther King Celebrants From Being Offended-Fiction!

Summary of the eRumor:
This forwarded email says that the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) constructed a box around a statue of George Washington at a 2011 Martin Luther King Jr. observance ceremony in Columbia, South Carolina. The email says that the NAACP did this out of concern that participants would not feel offended by its presence.

The Truth:
There was an event celebrating the life of Martin Luther King Jr. in Columbia, South Carolina and according to a January 18, 2011 article in South Carolina's The State, a statue of George Washington was covered by a three-sided structure that was "intended to display a rally graphic and serve as a photo-and-television backdrop for the event’s speakers."

The statue of the First President has been covered in past events and the article said that their archives showed similar structures erected dating back as far as 2007. We have found no evidence that this was purposely meant to hide the statue of Washington this year or any years prior.

updated 02/28/11

A real example of the eRumor as it has appeared on the Internet:

The annual MLK observance at the state house in Columbia, SC had an interesting twist this year. The event is held on the north side steps of the statehouse. Prominent at that location is a large bronze statue of George Washington. This year, the NAACP constructed a “box” to conceal the Father of His Country from view so that participants would not be offended by his presence.

I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw this picture of the MLK Day rally in Columbia, South Carolina yesterday. This rally was sponsored by the NAACP and they said that they covered the statue because they “didn’t want to offend anyone”. Really? George Washington is the father of this nation.. How is he offensive to anyone?

Can you imagine what would happen if we covered the statue of Dr. King on President’s Day? Of course, this disgusting display of anti-Americanism wasn’t covered at all by the national media and only the local paper in Columbia had a little piece on it. It has been covered a little by the blog-world and I think the word needs to get out to the general public that this is what the NAACP is all about…..militant, hateful and racist. In doing this, they disrespected Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I bet he would be equally disgusted. Awful.