Maryland Asian Caucus Members Applaud Removal of Taney Statue and

Call for Changing State Song

As members of Maryland's Asian American Pacific Islander Caucus, we applaud

the recent decision to remove the statue of Supreme Court Justice Roger Taney
from the State House grounds and further call on the General Assembly to revise
or replace our state song.

The Taney statue and the state song celebrate aspects of Maryland history in
which we take no pride. The Confederate and Nazi themed white nationalist
violence in Charlottesville, Virginia have reopened wounds from our nation's
history of slavery, segregation, and racial inequality. There are other ways to
educate the public about this painful history without glorifying one of the worst
rulings in American jurisprudence.

The State House grounds has room for only two large statues. Maryland has but
one state song. Let us use these three unique opportunities to highlight a
Maryland history that makes our entire population proud. Let us relegate the more
sordid aspects of the past to museums, history books, and other formats more
appropriate for conveying the divisive evolution Maryland has witnessed over the
decades. The threat of backtracking on America's progress on race relations
make this a more timely history lesson now than ever before.

Senator Susan Lee

Delegate Kriselda Valderrama

Delegate Aruna Miller

Delegate Clarence Lam

Delegate Mark S Chang

Delegate David Moon

Delegate Kumar Barve

Delegate Jay Jalisi