SALISBURY — About 200 people gathered in the Salisbury Civic Center on Monday evening to talk about the “Fame” monument that sits in downtown Salisbury.

Although opinions clearly diverged on what should be done about the monument, what it means and why it matters, the meeting occurred without disruption. It was evident as people greeted one another and in many comments that this was a conversation between neighbors.

But the majority of people did not speak, instead sitting in chairs or along the wall as they listened. Some community members held up green signs that stated “#MoveFame,” and there were no other signs used.

Cliff Scroger, who attended but did not speak, retired to Salisbury and was quick to identify himself as a New Yorker. Scroger came to the meeting already thinking that the monument needs additional context and told the Post he was there to listen and to take notes.

Others also said they came with pre-existing ideas about “Fame” but came to understand the positions of others whose views did not make sense previously

Josh Vernon, who sat in the back of the nearly full room, said he wanted to see the monument moved. With ancestors that fought for the Confederacy, though, Vernon said he also understood the positions of those wanting it to stay. For him, the hurt he saw it causing minorities was not worth it.

“I can honor my ancestors without honoring their political decisions,” he said.

As far as what he hoped to get from the event, “I would like to see truth given and received,” he said.

Others came in hopes of explaining their position to others. David Flow, who is from Salisbury, remembers seeing the statue as a child before it was enveloped in its current controversy.

“I’m here because I support the statue,” he said. “To me, it’s not a racist thing. It represents people that died in the war, whether black or white. I just wish people would get along and understand what it means to me.”

The Rev. Marcus Fairley, who spoke Monday, was there as a private citizen and as a member of the Salisbury-Rowan and North Carolina NAACP to ask the city to move “Fame.”

Many were listening, as the auditorium remained nearly full, despite people quietly coming and going throughout. The lasting effects of the nearly two hours of community members listening to one another is yet to be seen.

Destiny Stone said she came because she wanted people to see that young people care and because she wants the statue moved.

“I wanted to hear the different opinions of people I lived with,” she said. However, she was unsure how she felt “being a young African-American woman and hearing different sides that seemed not to care about my being and how I got to this country in the first place.”

After the event, Stone shook her head and said, “I don’t know.”