>The monument came down after 9:15 p.m. Monday. Earlier in the evening, protesters covered the statue with gray banners, erecting "an alternative monument" that said, in part, "For a world without white supremacy."
>The gathering downtown on Franklin Street started as a demonstration in solidarity with the UNC graduate student who faces criminal and honor court charges for throwing red ink and blood on the Confederate statue in April. It quickly became a march across the street to the UNC campus, where police officers stood at the monument.
>A skirmish broke out when someone threw a smoke bomb into the crowd. Police chased one protester and arrested another for resisting, delaying and obstructing an officer. The unidentified man who was arrested may also face another charge of wearing a mask to a rally, a UNC police spokesman said.
>Police formed a perimeter around protesters. One banner said, "The whole world is watching. Which side are you on?" Some of the demonstrators wore Carolina blue bandannas over their faces that said, "Sam must fall."
>The rally started with the singing of the black national anthem, "Lift Every Voice and Sing."
>"It's time to build monuments to honor those who have been murdered by white supremacy," Little said, adding, "It's time to tear down Silent Sam. It's time to tear down UNC's institutional white supremacy."
>Another graduate student, Jerry Wilson, said being a black man on UNC's can be a lonely experience. He read what he said was a letter he had written to UNC Chancellor Carol Folt.
>"When you have to take the long way between classes in order to avoid the sight of a statue that denies your human dignity, the Southern Part of Heaven can feel an awful lot like hell," said Wilson, who studies education.
>Wilson placed a rope, fashioned as a noose, around his neck and vowed to wear it until Silent Sam is removed. He said the rope would symbolize what he said is a hostile environment created by the statue.
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