Racism Very Much Alive in Orange, Texas? Man Makes Disparaging Remarks to Protestors of Confederate Monument, Caught on Video
As protestors gathered in front of the Confederate Memorial of the Wind on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in Orange on Saturday, November 10, 2018, a man approached them in disapproval about their protest and assured them "Jesus f***ing hates you!"
This man approached us yesterday (Saturday, November 10, 2018) during our protest of the Confederate Memorial of the Wind in Orange, Texas. We had been at the site for about 5 minutes with our signs before he first yelled at us from his car ("F*%# you!"). He then got on the freeway heading west, circled back, and parked his car at the gas station/convenience store across the street. The video is unedited. - Youtube, Jeremy Parzen
Here's a little background on the Confederate Memorial of the Wind. According to Wikipedia, construction of the "nearly-completed" memorial began in 2013 and is dedicated to the "Confederate States of America and the Texas regiments of the Confederate Army". Upon completion, "the memorial will feature 32 flags representing Civil War units from Texas, along with eight large confederate flags" which will be visible for Interstate 10.
Though met with opposition from residents, as well as the NAACP in Orange, TX, the memorial is located on private land, so there isn't anything that can be done to stop its construction. To add insult to injury, the memorial is conveniently located on Martin Luther King Drive.
A crowd-funded billboard was also published over the weekend to bring awareness to the controversy surrounding the memorial so that outsiders know it's not a reflection of the entire city of Orange, Texas.
[Sources: Beaumont Enterprise, DoBianchi.com, and Wikipedia]