Chadwick Boseman may get a permanent monument in his honor erected in his hometown. Since the tragic death of the Marvel star last Friday, an online petition has been created calling for a Confederate memorial in Anderson, South Carolina to be replaced with a statue of Boseman. While a replacement situation isn’t on the cards as yet, town officials are now working on developing a public tribute to the beloved Black Panther actor.
TMZ has received word from a spokesperson in Anderson Mayor Terence Roberts’ office that, though the Mayor doesn’t have the power to remove the Confederate memorial without approval from the state legislature, “the city is enthusiastically working on a permanent public tribute to honor the late actor.”
The outlet notes that city officials have “already contacted an artist and they’re brainstorming ideas on how best to honor the hometown hero who played legendary roles. We’re told the statue will include a mix of sculpture with mural and/or art elements.” The public will also get some input on what form the monument takes, while the spokesperson promises that the tribute will be “suitable for a king.”
This follows on from the news that Boseman will have a scholarship named after him at his old school of T.L. Hanna High School in South Carolina. It remains to be seen whether the call for the Confederate monument to be removed in his name will have any affect, but at the time of writing, the petition has reached 62,000 signatures, which is just 13K away from its goal of 75,000. No doubt this is a cause that the actor himself would have supported.
Either way, it’s only right that Chadwick Boseman – who died after a private four-year battle with cancer – receive a permanent tribute in his hometown, as the hero to so many around the world deserves to be immortalized.
