New Orleans Gov’t Begins Removal Of Confederate Monuments
Shortly after 1 a.m. Monday morning (April 24), New Orleans officials began the removal of one of four monuments in the city that pay homage to the Confederacy. The dismantling of these pieces of history has sparked controversy and division amongst the citizens of NOLA.
READ 24-Year-Old Michigan Man Drowns While Trying To Save Girlfriend’s Toddler Son
The first monument to be removed was the Liberty Monument, which New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu says was erected to “revere white supremacy.” The early morning scheduling of it’s removal was a part of a strategy to minimize the presence of protestors. The other three monuments scheduled for removal are statues in commemoration of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, P.G.T. Beauregard and Confederate States of America President Jefferson Davis. A small gathering of people held a candlelight vigil at the statue of Jefferson Davis early Monday morning.
Vigil vs. removal of statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis in New Orleans https://t.co/o62467lOgh pic.twitter.com/0FRbscGeYL
— J. Walker (@Walker72John) April 24, 2017
A local Civil War re-enactor told NBC that he felt the dismantling of the monuments is a “terrible thing” that will cost the city money and remove a sense of identity and history. Mayor Landrieu disagrees.
“The monuments are an aberration,” he says. “They’re actually a denial of our history and they were done in a time when people who still controlled the Confederacy were in charge of this city and it only represents a four-year period in our 1,000-year march to where we are today.”
