While Confederate monuments are being protested and debated around the country, there remains a tall symbol of the Confederacy standing in Miami.
A Confederate war memorial stands in the center of a Miami cemetery just north of downtown. The Confederate flag is etched in stone along with the words "our heroes."
The monument was constructed in 1913 and used to be located outside of the old Dade County Courthouse until it was moved in the 1920s to make way for the current courthouse.
"It doesn't offend me, it reminds me of what's possible from humanity," said Miami resident Ray Henry, who uses the monument as a teaching tool for his children. "Sometimes I go around the circle three times just to envision what it was like, that's what these statues are to me, memorials."
Doctor Paul George, a historian with HistoryMiami Museum, said history can be painful but it needs to be preserved.
"I think of how deep south this community was and how many people had southern roots in this community when this cemetery opened in 1897," said Dr. George.
Confederate monuments like the one in Miami are not uncommon in big cities. However, a Union war moment depicting a Union captain at a nearby cemetery is rare.
Local
"To see a Union monument for me shows, there was a type of healing going on," said Dr. George, referring to the time the Union monument was erected in the 1930s.
It's healing that continues today, still standing and teaching decades later.
"There's a certain healing and overcoming big differences that I think these monuments represent," he said.
