RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe says he’s changing his mind on the need to remove Confederate statues in the wake of a deadly white nationalist rally in Charlottesville.
McAuliffe released a statement Wednesday saying monuments of Confederate leaders have become “flashpoints for hatred, division and violence.” He’s encouraging local governments and General Assembly to take down those monuments and put them museums.
McAuliffe had previously said he did not think the monuments needed to be removed. He joins a growing number of elected officials who have called for Confederate monuments to be removed following the violent events in Charlottesville, where white supremacists rallied against the city’s planned removal of a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
Below is the Governor’s statement on the future of Confederate monuments in Virginia: pic.twitter.com/N9XHObgGX3
— Terry McAuliffe (@GovernorVA) August 16, 2017
“The discussion regarding whether to relocate Confederate statues is an important and legitimate conversation that should take place in each community that contains one. Monuments should serve as unifiers, to inspire us collectively and to venerate our greatest citizens. Unfortunately, the recent events in Charlottesville demonstrate that monuments celebrating the leadership of the Confederacy have become flashpoints for hatred, division and violence.
As we attempt to heal and learn from the tragic events in Charlottesville, I encourage Virginia’s localities and the General Assembly – which are vested with the legal authority – to take down these monuments and relocate them to museums or more appropriate settings. I hope we can all now agree that these symbols are a barrier to progress, inclusion and equality in Virginia and, while the decision may not be mine to make, I believe the path forward is clear.”
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