Group Behind Winston-Salem Confederate Statue Wants It Back Up

A Confederate statue is no longer standing over the familiar downtown Winston-Salem corner it once overlooked. But the fight over its placement is not over.

City officials removed the monument earlier this month, describing it as a public nuisance that could incite violence.

Now the organization behind the statue is making a legal argument to put it back up. The Winston-Salem Journal reports that the United Daughters of the Confederacy say the city created a crisis around the statue to justify taking it down.

They want it back in the place it stood for more than 100 years. In court filings, they also ask that City Attorney Angela Carmon no longer have involvement in the case.

City officials stand by the statue's removal.

City officials have suggested relocating it to historic Salem Cemetery and have offered to pay for the move. The monument has been vandalized twice, once in 2017 and again just before the end of 2018.

Crews examined the statue in February in preparation for an expected move. The United Daughters of the Confederacy argued the city should not move it until a court hearing could address such issues as who ultimately owns it. The city went ahead and moved it this month.