Monument Removal

Even if you do not know anything about any of these particular monuments, I am sure you have an opinion on whether monument removal is worthwhile.

Given the context provided on this site (about the functions of soldier veneration, the recasting of the Confederate cause, and the celebration of the Confederate cause, in addition to the funereal function), the debate is perhaps more nuanced than if they were solely funereal.

Now that you know that the monuments were not only somber memorials to the dead, location is more of a factor. Consider the difference between a problematic monument that you have to see daily as you go to work or school and one in a graveyard that you will never see if you so choose.

As of March 2026, no monuments in graveyards have been removed, despite some calls to do so (e.g. Cynthiana).1 Calls for removal have played out differently on two occasions where public-facing monuments outside of cemeteries were removed:

Athens, Georgia:

In June 2020, it was decided, “as part of a larger project to reconstruct pedestrian walkways,” that the 1872 monument would be moved from its prominent location in downtown Athens to the side of a highway. This thinly veiled justification was required under Georgia law, which only allows for monuments to be moved for the benefit of transportation projects.2

Use the slider (click on the image to access it) below to compare the locations that under Georgia law had to be considered of “similar prominence, honor, visibility, and access.”3

Portsmouth, Virginia:

After the monument was severely damaged (see image at top of article) in June 2020, the city decided to permanently remove it.4 Like the Athens monument, it was prominently displayed in a downtown, high-traffic area.

  1. Local 12, “Memorials or affronts? Should local Confederate statues, memorials remain?,” August 18, 2017, YouTube video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55LzNgKIOfw. ↩︎
  2. Stephanie Allen, “Athens Confederate monument being reassembled in its new location,” Online Athens, August 31, 2021, https://www.onlineathens.com/story/news/local/2021/06/25/athens-confederate-monument-being-moved-new-location/5347398001/. ↩︎
  3. Office of the Attorney General, “Information Regarding Damaging, Destroying, Replacing or Removing Monuments,” July 1, 2020, https://law.georgia.gov/press-releases/2020-07-01/information-regarding-damaging-destroying-replacing-or-removing-monuments. ↩︎
  4. Web staff, “Council votes to use $250K to remove Portsmouth Confederate monument,” WTKR, June 23, 2020, https://www.wtkr.com/news/council-votes-to-use-250k-to-remove-portsmouth-confederate-monument. ↩︎