Workers to remove 2nd Confederate statue in New Orleans

Author: AP
Published:
Charles Lincoln speaks during a candlelight vigil at the statue of Jefferson Davis in New Orleans, Monday, April 24, 2017. New Orleans will begin taking down Confederate statutes, becoming the latest Southern body to divorce itself from what some say are symbols of racism and intolerance. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

NEW ORLEANS (AP) A city news release says workers are preparing to take down a statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis in New Orleans, the second of four monuments to Confederate era figures the City Council has voted to remove.

Officials had refused to give advance public notice of Thursday morning’s removal, citing threats of violence against contractors and workers involved in the effort. The Davis statue has been the scene of protests by supporters and opponents of the monuments’ removal.

Late last month, the first monument – a 35-foot-tall granite obelisk – was removed by masked workers under cover of darkness. The obelisk was a tribute to whites who battled a biracial Reconstruction government installed in New Orleans after the Civil War.

Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.