'Silent Sam' Confederate statue on UNC campus toppled by protesters

Get the Full StoryGerry Broome AP

A Confederate statue at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill was toppled during a rally by hundreds of protesters who decried the memorial known as "Silent Sam" as a symbol of racist heritage.

Once it was on the ground, demonstrators kicked it and cheered.

UNC leaders previously said state law prevented the school from removing the statue.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. AP — A Confederate statue in the heart of North Carolina's flagship university was toppled Monday night during a rally by hundreds of protesters who decried the memorial known as "Silent Sam" as a symbol of racist heritage.

The crowd gathered across the street from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill plaza for a series of speakers at 7 p.m. before heading over to the quadrangle. Then, about two hours into the protest, a group surrounded the statue and pulled it down, according to television footage. Once it was on the ground, demonstrators kicked it and cheered.See the rest of the story at Business InsiderNOW WATCH: INSIDE WEST POINT: What it s really like for new Army cadets on their first daySee Also:Republicans are enraged at Pearl Jam for promoting an upcoming concert in Montana with a poster of the White House burningThe Vatican expresses 'shame and sorrow' over the hundreds of sex abuse allegations described in Pennsylvania grand jury reportFormer US security officials deliver scathing rebukes against Trump for yanking John Brennan's security clearanceSEE ALSO: Trump appeared to confuse napalm with Agent Orange and he reportedly got the idea from an iconic movie set in the Vietnam War

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