Charlottesville historic monument controversy

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The Charlottesville historic monument controversy is the public discussion on how Charlottesville should respond to protesters who complain that various local monuments are racist. The controversy began before 2016 when protest groups in the community asked the city council for the local removal of Confederate monuments and memorials. Other monuments became part of the controversy, including those of Thomas Jefferson because of his ownership of slaves and those of Lewis and Clark for their advocacy of white colonists over Native Americans.

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In 2016, the Charlottesville city council responded by voting to make changes including the removal of some statues and changing the names of some parks. Counterprotesters then filed a lawsuit to keep the statues.

On July 10, 2021, the city removed the statues of Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. [1]

Monuments

Events

Establishment of Blue Ribbon Commission

Renaming of parks

On 4 June 2017, attorneys representing the decedents of Confederate soldiers opposed the renaming of the parks. [5]

In June 2017, the city council voted to rename the parks. Jackson Park became "Justice Park," and Lee Park became "Emancipation Park." [6]

In July 2018, the city council voted again 4-1 to rename the parks. [7] Emancipation Park became "Market Street Park," and Justice Park became "Court Square Park." [7] City council members voting to change the names said that the idealistic names did not fit if the Confederate statues remained in the park. [7] Also, they reported to have survey results in favor of the new names. [7] The city council member in opposition said that renaming the parks would lead the community to avoid necessary conversation. [7]

Payne v. City of Charlottesville

Payne v. City of Charlottesville was the lawsuit filed by advocates for preservation of the monuments. The lawsuit paused removal of the statues and argued against various alterations.

Unite the Right rally

The Unite the Right rally was an event on August 11–12, 2017 in Charlottesville organized in protest of attempts to remove monuments in Charlottesville. [8] The event drew international media attention and included violence that included a death.

Response

In October 2016 a report by city staff in Charlottesville estimated that the cost of removing the statues could be $700,000. [9] At the time this amount of money was large enough to be a factor in making a decision about moving the statues. [9]

In May 2017 Charlottesville Mayor Michael Signer wrote to explain why he, as one of 5 members of city council, voted with the minority in a 3-2 decision to keep the statue in place. [10] He explained that removing the statue would lead to people forgetting the racist history of the community. [10] By keeping the statue in place he hoped that the community could reinterpret it from being a symbol of racial oppression to a memorial for remembering the struggle to overcome oppression. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monument Avenue</span> United States historic place

Monument Avenue is a tree-lined grassy mall dividing the eastbound and westbound traffic in Richmond, Virginia, originally named for its emblematic complex of structures honoring those who fought for the Confederacy during the American Civil War. Between 1900 and 1925, Monument Avenue greatly expanded with architecturally significant houses, churches, and apartment buildings. Four of the bronze statues representing J. E. B. Stuart, Stonewall Jackson, Jefferson Davis and Matthew Fontaine Maury were removed from their memorial pedestals amidst civil unrest in July 2020. The Robert E. Lee monument was handled differently as it was owned by the Commonwealth, in contrast with the other monuments which were owned by the city. Dedicated in 1890, it was removed on September 8, 2021. The last remaining statue on Monument Avenue is the Arthur Ashe Monument, memorializing the African-American tennis champion, dedicated in 1996.

<i>Confederate War Memorial</i> (Dallas) Confederate monument previously displayed in Dallas, Texas, United States

The Confederate War Memorial was a 65 foot (20 m)-high monument that pays tribute to soldiers and sailors from Texas who served with the Confederate States of America (CSA) during the American Civil War. The monument was dedicated in 1897, following the laying of its cornerstone the previous year. Originally located in Sullivan Park near downtown Dallas, Texas, United States, the monument was relocated in 1961 to the nearby Pioneer Park Cemetery in the Convention Center District, next to the Dallas Convention Center and Pioneer Plaza.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Confederate Monument (Murray, Kentucky)</span> United States historic place

The Confederate Monument in Murray is a statue located in the northeast corner of the Calloway County Courthouse in Murray, Kentucky. It commemorates the 800 citizens of the county who served in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, and is one of several Confederate monuments in Kentucky featuring Robert E. Lee. There is another one in Bardstown KY. Despite recent controversy, the Calloway County Fiscal Court voted to keep the statue on its grounds in July 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Equestrian statue of Stonewall Jackson (Charlottesville, Virginia)</span> United States historic place

Thomas Jonathan Jackson is a historic bronze equestrian statue of Confederate general Stonewall Jackson which was formerly located at Courthouse Historic District of Charlottesville, Virginia and installed in 1921. The statue was sculpted by Charles Keck and was the third of four works commissioned from members of the National Sculpture Society by philanthropist Paul Goodloe McIntire. It was the second of three statues McIntire donated to the city of Charlottesville, which he did over a period of five years from 1919 to 1924. The statue was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert E. Lee Monument (Charlottesville, Virginia)</span> Sculpture in Charlottesville, Virginia

The Robert E. Lee Monument was an outdoor bronze equestrian statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee and his horse Traveller located in Charlottesville, Virginia's Market Street Park in the Charlottesville and Albemarle County Courthouse Historic District. The statue was commissioned in 1917 and dedicated in 1924, and in 1997 was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was removed on July 10, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert E. Lee Monument (Richmond, Virginia)</span> Former public sculpture in Richmond, Virginia, United States

The Robert E. Lee Monument in Richmond, Virginia, was the first installation on Monument Avenue in 1890, and would ultimately be the last monument removed from the site. Before its removal on September 8, 2021, the monument honored Confederate Civil War General Robert E. Lee, depicted on a horse atop a large marble base that stood over 60 feet tall. Constructed in France and shipped to Virginia, it remained the largest installation on Monument Avenue for over a century; it was first listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007 and the Virginia Landmarks Register in 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jefferson Davis Monument (New Orleans, Louisiana)</span> Monument formerly installed in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.

The Jefferson Davis Monument, also known as the Jefferson Davis Memorial, was an outdoor sculpture and memorial to Jefferson Davis, installed at Jeff Davis Parkway and Canal Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States from 1911 to 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unite the Right rally</span> 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia

The Unite the Right rally was a white supremacist rally that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, from August 11 to 12, 2017. Marchers included members of the alt-right, neo-Confederates, neo-fascists, white nationalists, neo-Nazis, Klansmen, and far-right militias. Some groups chanted racist and antisemitic slogans and carried weapons, Nazi and neo-Nazi symbols, the Valknut, Confederate battle flags, Deus vult crosses, flags, and other symbols of various past and present anti-Semitic and anti-Islamic groups. The organizers' stated goals included the unification of the American white nationalist movement and opposing the proposed removal of the statue of General Robert E. Lee from Charlottesville's former Lee Park. The rally sparked a national debate over Confederate iconography, racial violence, and white supremacy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Market Street Park</span> Park in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States

Market Street Park, known as Lee Park until 2017, and as Emancipation Park from June 2017 to July 2018, is a public park in Charlottesville, Virginia.

More than 100 monuments and memorials to the Confederate States of America and associated figures have been removed, all but five since 2015. Some have been removed by state and local governments; others have been torn down by protestors.

Payne v. City of Charlottesville is a 2017 lawsuit opposing the removal of Confederate monuments and memorials in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Court Square Park is a public park in Charlottesville, Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Thomas Jefferson (University of Virginia)</span>

Thomas Jefferson is a statue of U.S. Founding Father and president Thomas Jefferson in front of the Rotunda at the University of Virginia, the university he founded and designed. The statue was crafted by Moses Ezekiel in 1910 and was a copy of the Jefferson statue in Louisville, Kentucky.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stonewall Jackson Monument</span>

The Stonewall Jackson Monument in Richmond, Virginia, was erected in honor of Thomas Jonathon "Stonewall" Jackson, a Confederate general. The monument was located at the centre of the crossing of Monument Avenue and North Arthur Ashe Boulevard, in Richmond, Virginia. The bronze equestrian statue was unveiled in 1919. Along this avenue are other statues including Robert E. Lee, J. E. B. Stewart, Jefferson Davis, Matthew Maury and more recently Arthur Ashe. Thomas Jackson is best known as one of Robert E. Lee's most trusted commanders throughout the early period of the American Civil War between Southern Confederate states and Northern Union states. He rose to prominence after his vital role in the Confederate victory at the First Battle of Bull Run in July 1861, continuing to command troops until his untimely death on May 10, 1863, after falling fatally ill following the amputation of his wounded arm.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Paviour, Ben (10 July 2021). "Charlottesville Removes Robert E. Lee Statue That Sparked A Deadly Rally". NPR.org.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Higgins, Jessie (September 15, 2020). "'Johnny Reb' is gone — Here's the status of the 5 other Charlottesville-area statues activists want removed". www.cvilletomorrow.org.
  3. ↑ Perez, Maria (14 April 2018). "The Thomas Jefferson Statue at the University of Virginia had the words "Racist + Rapist" spray painted in red". Newsweek.
  4. ↑ Baars, Samantha (3 March 2016). "Controversy resurfaces: Should the statue stand?". C-VILLE Weekly.
  5. ↑ SUAREZ, CHRIS (4 June 2017). "Deed prevents renaming of Jackson Park, lawyers say". The Daily Progress.
  6. ↑ "Charlottesville City Council Votes to Rename Lee, Jackson Parks". nbc29.com. WVIR-TV. 5 June 2017. Archived from the original on 13 August 2017. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "Charlottesville parks aren't ready for Justice, Emancipation". Chicago Sun-Times. Associated Press. 17 July 2018.
  8. ↑ Fortin, Jacey (August 13, 2017). "The Statue at the Center of Charlottesville's Storm". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  9. 1 2 Suarez, Chris (8 October 2016). "Removal of Lee, Jackson statues could cost Charlottesville $700,000". Richmond Times-Dispatch.
  10. 1 2 3 Signer, Michael (24 May 2017). "I'm a progressive mayor. Here's why I voted no on removing my city's Confederate statue". Washington Post.
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