Confederate Monuments and Anti-Black Stereotypes in the U.S. South

Abstract

I advance understanding of Confederate monuments through a large-scale examination of the linkage between individual racial attitudes and the presence of a Confederate monument on public property with a “Lost Cause” inscription. I rely on restricted access General Social Survey data (2010–2014) and an extensive inventory of Confederate monuments located in counties across the U.S. South. The focal outcome provides insight into expressions of anti-Black stereotypes among non-Hispanic Whites; however, I include sensitivity analyses to provide context for this central dynamic. I find evidence of a relationship between Confederate monuments and greater anti-Black racial attitudes among non-Hispanic Whites. However, this result is confined to anti-Black stereotypes; no other outcome—regarding Black, Asian, or Hispanic Americans—exhibits a robust, direct relationship with the presence of a Confederate monument. I argue the observed relationship is driven by racialized cultural frames emphasizing the Black-White boundary that are linked to Confederate monuments with a “Lost Cause” inscription.