John C. Calhoun Statue Vandalized in Downtown Charleston

A second historic statue in downtown Charleston has been vandalized.

The word “racist” and a reference to slavery was spray-painted in red on the John C. Calhoun statue in Marion Square.

Initially reading “Truth Justice and the Constitution,” the words “AND SLAVERY” were added underneath the phrase. Additionally, Calhoun’s name on the statue now reads “Calhoun, RACIST.”

The South Carolina native, who died eleven years before the start of the American Civil War, served terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate, and was Vice President to John Quincy Adams. He was also known as a defender of slavery and a supporter of the South’s succession from the Union.

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