The Charlottesville historic monument controversy is the public discussion on how

Charlottesville Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city in Virginia, United States. It is the seat of government of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Quee ...

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 There are more than 160 Confederate monuments and memorials to the Confederate States of America (CSA; the Confederacy) and associated figures that have been removed from public spaces in the United States, all but five of which have been sin ...

. Other monuments became part of the controversy, including those of

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

because of his ownership of slaves and those of

Lewis and Clark Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * " Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohe ...

for their advocacy of white colonists over Native Americans. 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 A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size. A sculpture ...

and

Stonewall Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general and military officer who served during the American Civil War. He played a prominent role in nearly all military engagements in the eastern the ...

Monuments

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Thomas Jonathan Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate States of America, Confederate general and military officer who served during the American Civil War. He played a prominent role in nearly all military e ...

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Robert Edward Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the overall commander of the Confederate States Army toward the end of the war. He led the Army of No ...

'' *''

'' * Meriwether Lewis and William Clark *''

George Rogers Clark George Rogers Clark (November 19, 1752 – February 13, 1818) was an American military officer and surveyor from Virginia who became the highest-ranking Patriot (American Revolution), Patriot military officer on the American frontier, nort ...

'' *'' At Ready'', the statue of

Johnny Reb Johnny Reb is the national personification of the common soldier of the Confederacy. During the American Civil War and afterwards, Johnny Reb and his Union counterpart Billy Yank were used in speech and literature to symbolize the common sol ...

* Court Square Park * Market Street Park

Events

Establishment of Blue Ribbon Commission

Renaming of parks

On 4 June 2017, attorneys representing the descendants of Confederate soldiers opposed the renaming of the parks. In June 2017, the city council voted to rename the parks. Jackson Park became "Justice Park," and Lee Park became "Emancipation Park." In July 2018, the city council voted again 4-1 to rename the parks. Emancipation Park became "Market Street Park," and Justice Park became "Court Square Park." City council members voting to change the names said that the idealistic names did not fit if the Confederate statues remained in the park. Also, they reported to have survey results in favor of the new names. The city council member in opposition said that renaming the parks would lead the community to avoid necessary conversation.

''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. 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. At the time this amount of money was large enough to be a factor in making a decision about moving the statues. In May 2017 Charlottesville Mayor

Michael Signer Michael Signer is an American attorney, author, and politician who served as mayor of Charlottesville, Virginia. Early life and education Signer is the son of Marjorie B. Signer, a communications director, and Robert Signer, a newspaper assignmen ...

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. He explained that removing the statue would lead to people forgetting the racist history of the community. 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.

References

{{Charlottesville monument controversy navbox 2016 controversies in the United States 2016 in Virginia Confederate States of America monuments and memorials Race-related controversies in the United States