Portsmouth City Council Votes To Remove Confederate Monument
PORTSMOUTH, Va. (AP) — Council members in a Virginia city unanimously voted to remove a Confederate monument that was damaged during the recent protests against racism and police brutality.
The resolution passed by the Portsmouth City Council Tuesday gives the city's manager authority to move the obelisk and its four statues from where it stands on the city's Olde Towne neighborhood, news outlets reported.
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"I think this is the right thing at this time in history and in our country," The Virginian-Pilot quotes Councilwoman Elizabeth Psimas, who previously voted against removing the monument, as saying.
The monument was erected in 1876 and stands on a site where slaves were once punished. When protesters painted and tore down parts of the memorial in June, a piece of the statue fell on a man, critically injuring him.
The monument will now be moved to a storage area, Portsmouth City Manager Lydia Pettis Patton said. The city will wait another 30 days to consider possible offers to take the memorial from museums, battlefields or other organizations.
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