--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you come to Montgomery, you see…" description: "\"When you come to Montgomery, you see fifty-nine monuments and memorials, all about the Civil War, all about Confederate leaders and generals. We have l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/544/bryan-stevenson-4134_civil-war_when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fift_93890.png" --- # When you come to Montgomery, you see fifty-nine monuments… ![“When you come to Montgomery, you see fifty-nine monuments and memorials, all about the Civil War, all about Confederate leaders and generals. We have lionized these people, and we have romanticized their courage and their commitment and their tenacity, and we have completely eliminated the reality…” quote by Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/544/bryan-stevenson-4134_civil-war_when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fift_93890.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/544/bryan-stevenson-4134_civil-war_when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fift_93890.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/544/bryan-stevenson-4134_civil-war_when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fift_93890.png) > “When you come to Montgomery, you see fifty-nine monuments and memorials, all about the Civil War, all about Confederate leaders and generals. We have lionized these people, and we have romanticized their courage and their commitment and their tenacity, and we have completely eliminated the reality that created the Civil War.” [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Monuments glorify Confederate figures while omitting the causes of the Civil War, skewing public memory. **In simple terms:** Memorials can distort history by ignoring context. Key Takeaway Remember causes, not just heroes. Themes history memory monuments civil war racial justice Mood reflective critical Type analytical provocative When to use this quote - museum curation - educational curricula - public debates Key Concepts public memory historical narrative Practical Applications - re‑contextualizing monuments - creating inclusive memorials Questions to Reflect On - What narratives are missing from current monuments? - How can societies balance remembrance with truth? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Civil war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-war/) [Commitment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commitment/) [Confederate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confederate/) [Leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leader/) [Memorial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memorial/) [Monument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monument/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Tenacity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tenacity/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [The landscape in Montgomery and in the South is just saturated with imagery. Markers are everywhere. There's a marker for the first Confederate post…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/the-landscape-in-montgomery-and-in-the-south-is-just-saturated-with/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [Montgomery's unique role in the domestic slave trade was that it was the first community that had a rail line that connected the Deep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/montgomery-s-unique-role-in-the-domestic-slave-trade-was-that-it-was/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [Once we had a rail station in Montgomery that connected to Columbus and went all the way up to Virginia, slave traders could transport…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/once-we-had-a-rail-station-in-montgomery-that-connected-to-columbus/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [Living in Montgomery, I've been antagonized by the emergence of a narrative about our history that I believe is quite false and misleading, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/living-in-montgomery-i-ve-been-antagonized-by-the-emergence-of-a/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [I do talk and think a lot about the legacy before me. I feel like if I didn't know that people had been in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/i-do-talk-and-think-a-lot-about-the-legacy-before-me-i-feel-like-if-i/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [In a landscape littered with all of this imagery about the nobility of the Civil War and the Confederate effort and struggle, the absence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/in-a-landscape-littered-with-all-of-this-imagery-about-the-nobility/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [I mean, the actors that I admired were Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, an actress named Barbara Harris. And Greta Garbo. They were great actors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-de-niro/i-mean-the-actors-that-i-admired-were-marlon-brando-montgomery-clift/) [Robert De Niro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-de-niro/) > [“I remained in my room more and more each day. The situation in Montgomery was so strange I decided to try passing back into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howard-griffin/i-remained-in-my-room-more-and-more-each-day-the-situation-in/) [John Howard Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howard-griffin/) > [If we are going to list guitar influences, the biggest one by far is Wes Montgomery. Also, Gary Burton was obviously huge for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/if-we-are-going-to-list-guitar-influences-the-biggest-one-by-far-is/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [“Lord Montgomery considers nothing but his own desires," he said in a gravelly voice. "I'll tell you something else. Lord Montgomery has a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/lord-montgomery-considers-nothing-but-his-own-desires-he-said-in-a/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Re: Robert Montgomery's Poems His writing bears the same relation to poetry which a Turkey carpet bears to a picture. There are colours in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-macaulay/re-robert-montgomery-s-poems-his-writing-bears-the-same-relation-to/) [Thomas B. Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-b-macaulay/) > [My favorite country blues player was Big Bill Broonzy. City blues was Freddie King, but I liked them all - Muddy Waters, John Lee…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-lee/my-favorite-country-blues-player-was-big-bill-broonzy-city-blues-was/) [Alvin Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-lee/) > [“Montgomery Scott, call me Scotty,” he said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-a-goodman/montgomery-scott-call-me-scotty-he-said/) [David A. Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-a-goodman/) > [The last thing I want to do is having someone get behind a Montgomery Clift biopic, and then just do the first script that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bomer/the-last-thing-i-want-to-do-is-having-someone-get-behind-a-montgomery/) [Matt Bomer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bomer/) > [The majority of the Negroes who took part in the year-long boycott of Montgomery's buses were poor and untutored; but they understood the essence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-majority-of-the-negroes-who-took-part-in-the-year-long-boycott-of/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) ## More by Bryan Stevenson > [I love museums, and I think they're fantastic, but they don't touch the people who I frequently think need to be touched with at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/i-love-museums-and-i-think-they-re-fantastic-but-they-don-t-touch-the/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [I've come to understand and to believe that each of us is more than the worst thing we've ever done. I believe that for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/i-ve-come-to-understand-and-to-believe-that-each-of-us-is-more-than/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [I'm persuaded that if most people saw what I see on a regular basis, they would want change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/i-m-persuaded-that-if-most-people-saw-what-i-see-on-a-regular-basis/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [“These aren’t my scars, cuts, and bruises. These are my medals of honor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/these-aren-t-my-scars-cuts-and-bruises-these-are-my-medals-of-honor/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [The Bureau of Justice reports that one in three black male babies born this century will go to jail or prison - that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/the-bureau-of-justice-reports-that-one-in-three-black-male-babies/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [If you're just the person with power, exercising that power fearfully and angrily, you're going to be an operative of injustice and inequality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/if-you-re-just-the-person-with-power-exercising-that-power-fearfully/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [In a landscape littered with all of this imagery about the nobility of the Civil War and the Confederate effort and struggle, the absence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/in-a-landscape-littered-with-all-of-this-imagery-about-the-nobility/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [If you love your community, then you need to be insisting on justice in all circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/if-you-love-your-community-then-you-need-to-be-insisting-on-justice/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [There was never a time you could get the majority of people in Alabama or Mississippi, or even southern Delaware, to vote to end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/there-was-never-a-time-you-could-get-the-majority-of-people-in/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [I talk about my grandmother a lot, because she's an amazing person - not in some dramatic, distinct, unique way, but anybody who is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/i-talk-about-my-grandmother-a-lot-because-she-s-an-amazing-person-not/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [You can't understand what happened to Michael Brown in Ferguson, you can't understand what happened to Eric Garner in New York City, without understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/you-can-t-understand-what-happened-to-michael-brown-in-ferguson-you/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [I know this might be broadcast broadly. But I'm 52 years old, and I'm going to admit to you that I've never had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/i-know-this-might-be-broadcast-broadly-but-i-m-52-years-old-and-i-m/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [Are you the sum total of your worst acts?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/are-you-the-sum-total-of-your-worst-acts/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [If we want to be proud of our country, if we want to be proud as Americans, if we want to be proud of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/if-we-want-to-be-proud-of-our-country-if-we-want-to-be-proud-as/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [If you read the 13th Amendment, it doesn't talk about narratives of racial difference. It doesn't talk about ideologies of white supremacy. It only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/if-you-read-the-13th-amendment-it-doesn-t-talk-about-narratives-of/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) [Explore all 115 Bryan Stevenson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) ## More Civil war quotes > [“Time overlaps itself. A breath breathed from a passing breeze is not the whole wind, neither is it just the last of what has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-kesey/time-overlaps-itself-a-breath-breathed-from-a-passing-breeze-is-not/) [Ken Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-kesey/) > [“Whatever happened in those more than one hundred years, from the time my great-great-great grandfather studied law to the time when my own father…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwenn-wright/whatever-happened-in-those-more-than-one-hundred-years-from-the-time/) [Gwenn Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwenn-wright/) > [“AUSTRALIA, LIKE THE UNITED STATES, experienced a different path to inclusive institutions than the one taken by England. The same revolutions that shook England…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daron-acemo-lu/australia-like-the-united-states-experienced-a-different-path-to/) [Daron Acemoğlu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daron-acemo-lu/) > [“These are all good things, I said. But no one knows where your country is or who you are. You don't have a familiar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/these-are-all-good-things-i-said-but-no-one-knows-where-your-country/) [Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/) > [“Thinking about the weather was one way of shutting out of his mind the appalling bloody human mess sprawled out over the bed of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-ellis/thinking-about-the-weather-was-one-way-of-shutting-out-of-his-mind/) [Mark Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-ellis/) > [It cost about 75 cents to kill a man in Ceasar's time. The price rose to about $3,000 per man during the Napoleonic wars;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-bone/it-cost-about-75-cents-to-kill-a-man-in-ceasar-s-time-the-price-rose/) Homer Bone > [Alabama soldiers, all I ask of you is to keep up with the Texans!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-lee/alabama-soldiers-all-i-ask-of-you-is-to-keep-up-with-the-texans/) [Robert E. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-lee/) > [“ “In the South, football is confused with religion, chivalry, the Civil War, and women.” -Diane Roberts, The Quotable South ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-ford/in-the-south-football-is-confused-with-religion-chivalry-the-civil/) [Deborah Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-ford/) > [“By the following morning, September 15, Jackson had positioned nearly fifty guns on Maryland Heights and at the base of Loudoun Heights.  Then he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-river-editors/by-the-following-morning-september-15-jackson-had-positioned-nearly/) [Charles River Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-river-editors/) > [Strange, (is it not?) that battles, martyrs, blood, even assassination should so condense - perhaps only really lastingly condense - a Nationality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/strange-is-it-not-that-battles-martyrs-blood-even-assassination/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [You must study to be frank with the world: frankness is the child of honesty and courage. Say just what you mean to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-lee/you-must-study-to-be-frank-with-the-world-frankness-is-the-child-of/) [Robert E. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-lee/) > [“Civil wars...are the best wars for the writer...because they have a way of continuing long afterwl wars between nations are resolved; because, with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-ellison/civil-wars-are-the-best-wars-for-the-writer-because-they-have-a-way/) [Ralph Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-ellison/) > [I am out of money,we are all out of money,but we dont need money down here- Dont need anything but Men , Muskets, Ammunition,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-connolly/i-am-out-of-money-we-are-all-out-of-money-but-we-dont-need-money-down/) James A. Connolly > [Affirmative action was designed to recognize the uniquely difficult journey of African-Americans. This policy was justifiable and understandable, even to those who came from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-webb/affirmative-action-was-designed-to-recognize-the-uniquely-difficult/) [Jim Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-webb/) > [“Only twenty - nine years in the entire human history had been without warfare, and now here he was too, travelling between the episodes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadeem-aslam/only-twenty-nine-years-in-the-entire-human-history-had-been-without/) [Nadeem Aslam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadeem-aslam/) [Browse all 1,714 Civil war quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-war/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When you come to Montgomery, you see fifty-nine monuments and memorials, all about the Civil War, all about Confederate leaders and generals. We have lionized these people, and we have romanticized their courage and their commitment and their tenacity, and we have completely eliminated the reality that created the Civil War.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bryan Stevenson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fifty-nine-monuments-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Civil war" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fifty-nine-monuments-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/544/bryan-stevenson-4134_civil-war_when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fift_93890.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/544/bryan-stevenson-4134_civil-war_when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fift_93890.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/544/bryan-stevenson-4134_civil-war_when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fift_93890.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When you come to Montgomery, you see fifty-nine monuments and memorials, all about the Civil War, all about…” — Bryan Stevenson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bryan Stevenson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When you come to Montgomery, you...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fifty-nine-monuments-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/when-you-come-to-montgomery-you-see-fifty-nine-monuments-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```