Topline
The American Civil War was effectively ended 150 years ago when Lee surrendered. Wednesday saw the fall of a large-than-life statue honoring Robert E. Lee, Confederate general, in Richmond, Virginia.
Crews remove one of the Confederacy's most prominent monuments, the towering [+] statue Confederate General Robert E. Lee, on Monument Avenue. This was done in Richmond, Va., as part of ASSOCIATED PRS
The Key Facts
A crane lifted the statue of Lee, seated on a horse, and then slowly lower it from its pedestal 40 feet below. This happened just before 9:15 a.m. Crowds cheered and chanted Whose Streets as the statue fell. As the statue fell, crowds cheered and chanted Whose streets? The area was surrounded by armed guards who asked anyone present to leave the monument site late Tuesday night. Security concerns led to the Federal Aviation Administration temporarily banning drones within two miles of the statue. This ban was in effect from Tuesday morning. It will be lifted shortly before midnight on Thursday.
Tangent
The Confederate monuments scattered across the United States, including Lees' statue, came under intense scrutiny during nationwide protests against racism last year after George Floyd, an African-American man, was shot to death by Minneapolis police. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, nearly 100 Confederate monuments were demolished last year. Critics claim the monuments glorify white supremacy. They point out that many Confederate statues are from the 20th century. These were first constructed to disenfranchise Black Americans with Jim Crow laws, then again during the civil rights movement in the 50s and 60s.
Important Background
Virginia officials announced Wednesday that the statue of Lee would go down after the unanimous decision by the state supreme Court that Virginia was able to remove it more than one year after Governor Lee. Ralph Northam (D), ordered the statue to be taken down. Two lawsuits challenged Northam's decision in court. They argued that the governor did not have the right to remove the state-owned statue, which was based on 19th century state law and a property title. Since its creation in 1890, the 21-foot-tall bronze statue of Lee presided over Richmond's Monument Park. This was 25 years after Lee surrendered to his command after the Battle of Appomattox Courthouse, which was fought just 76 miles east of Richmond.
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Virginia will take down massive statue of Robert E. Lee this week (Forbes).
