Dolly Parton (Photo: Instagram)
Celebrities, public figures and fans alike have signed a petition to replace a Tennessee statue of a KKK leader with one of Dolly Parton, a native of the state and a beloved pop culture figure.
The online petition has collected over 16,000 signatures and calls for the state’s officials to honor “a true Tennessee hero, Dolly Parton.” The page continues saying, “Tennessee is littered with statues memorializing Confederate officers. History should not be forgotten, but we need not glamorize those who do not deserve our praise.”
The statue in question resides in the Tennessee Statehouse and represents Nathan Bedford Forrest, a Confederate general, slave trader and KKK leader.
In December, petition author Jeremy Faison told the Tennesseean, “If we want to preserve history, then let’s tell it the right way. How about getting a lady in there? My daughter is 16, and I would love for her to come into the Capitol and see a lady up there… What’s wrong with someone like Dolly Parton being put in that alcove?”
Celebrity residents of Tennessee, Taylor Swift and Reese Witherspoon, have both publicly called for the removal of the statue. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and actor Henry Winkler are among the public figures supporting the movement for a statue of Parton to replace that of Forrest.
Parton has yet to publicly comment on the statue idea.
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