Long-time Asheville racial justice activist Oralene Simmons said it was only recently that she believed the prominent monument that has appeared on postcards of the city could ever come down. But in light of the time and all of the things we have seen happening lately, and with other cities and states taking down monuments and statutes, I just felt that we were in line to go that way.
Simmons, who is Black, co-chaired the Asheville-Buncombe County Vance Monument Task Force, formed after the spring protests.
Members were charged with deciding whether to repurpose the monument or tear it down. The task force ultimately voted 11-1 on Nov. 19 to remove it.
Asheville has not seen a year like 2020 in a hundred years literally.
On March 11, the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Not since the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-1919 has the world including our corner of it experienced this kind of public health challenge.
Working with Buncombe County health officials, City of Asheville employees rolled up their sleeves, crafted creative solutions and showed up to serve this community.
The year was also marked by national and local social unrest
following the death of George Floyd during an arrest in Minneapolis.
But that’s not all that happened. The City made strides in solar energy, social and environmental justice and completed a massive dam improvement project.