Statues in Charlottesville of Confederate generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson are war monuments protected by state law, a Virginia judge has ruled.
The decision comes nearly two years after three people were killed at the “Unite the Right” white nationalist rallyafter the city of Charlottesville voted to remove the statue of Lee.
Circuit Court Judge Richard E. Moore said the way the statues made people feel did not change the fact they paid homage to the Civil War heroes.
“While some people obviously see Lee and Jackson as symbols of white supremacy, others see them as brilliant military tacticians or complex leaders in a difficult time,” Moore claimed in his ruling, as reported by the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
“I believe that the defendants confused and conflated what the statues are with the intentions of motivations of some involved in erecting them.”
In the nine-page decision, Moore also ruled it was illegal for municipalities to remove the statues without permission from the state.
The decision strikes a major blow to the Charlottesville City Council who voted to remove the statue of Lee in early 2017.
Former city official Don Gathers, who served as chair of the commission that first called for the statues to be relocated, disagreed with Moore’s ruling.
“Just because something is legal, doesn’t mean it’s right or it’s moral,” Gathers told CNN. “I’m fearful what this has done is given the vile evilness that descended upon us in August of 2017 to come back.”
Protester Heather Heyer, 32, was killed and 19 more were injured when a man drove his car into the meeting of white nationalists and right-wing groups in Charlottesville in August 2017.
Two Virginia patrol troopers were also killed in a helicopter crash while assisting in public safety efforts.
The city covered the statues of Lee and Jackson with black tarps while it mourned the three deaths but Moore in February 2018 ruled they had to be removed.
nypost.com
