Plan To Remove Oldest Confederate Memorial In Dallas In Limbo
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - The Dallas City Council received staff recommendation Wednesday to maintain the City's oldest monument to the Confederacy, despite a formed task force call to remove it.
The recommendation sets in motion an expected political battle centered around a 113-year-old monument -- The Confederate War Memorial.
It sits in Dallas' Pioneer Cemetery, next to the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. Critics have long called the monument a tribute to a movement of hate, racism and white supremacy.
Last year, Dallas' Robert E Lee statue, erected in 1936, was removed on orders from the city.
Mayor Mike Rawlings and council members must now determine what moves will be made for the Confederate memorial, erected in 1896, complete with statues for Lee, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and others.
Council members are split on the issue.
"Look how far this city has come despite those statues. We passed civil rights act, we passed fair housing and the statues are still there," Councilman Rickey Callahan said.
But Mayor Pro Tem Dwaine Caraway said the monument can not stand in its present form. "All of the Confederate stuff with a bearing on the history, for the progress of this city, we must remove it," he said.
The council will also have to decide whether to remove Confederate names from some city streets. The council is expected to vote on the matters in 2-3 weeks.