RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — One of the nation’s largest Confederate monuments has come down in the former capital of the Confederacy.
The figure of Gen. Robert E. Lee atop a horse towered over Richmond, Virginia, for more than a century. It was lowered to the ground Wednesday morning, and a work crew began cutting it into pieces.
A crowd of onlookers erupted in cheers and song. Gov. Ralph Northam ordered the statue’s removal last summer, citing nationwide pain over the death of George Floyd at the hands of white police officers in Minneapolis. Litigation tied up his plans until the Supreme Court of Virginia cleared the way last week.
