The Virginia legislature this week passed a bill allowing local governments to decide on the fate of Confederate monuments. Gov. Ralph Northam said in the past that he supports the bill and plans to sign it.
The new law, which will go into effect later this year, gives governments the authority to “remove, relocate, or alter any monument or memorial for war veterans located in its public space, regardless of when erected.”
Until this law was passed, the City of Alexandria’s hands were tied when it came to deciding whether to remove or relocate Confederate statues. That includes the Appomattox statue, which is owned by the United Daughters of the Confederacy. It sits on a pedestal in the middle of the intersection of Washington and Prince streets, where it causes a hazard to drivers.
The bronze statue in Alexandria commemorates Confederate soldiers from Alexandria. M. Caspar Buberl created the sculpture after it was commissioned by the United Confederate Veterans in the late 1880s. Its dedication ceremony was May 24, 1889. It is modeled after a painting of a soldier surveying the damage from the famous battle in Appomattox County, Virginia, during the Civil War.
In an email to Alexandria Living Magazine in early February, Mayor Justin Wilson wrote:
“In September of 2016, the Council voted unanimously to pursue moving the statue out of the middle of Washington Street. Since that time, the Council has annually requested permission as part of our legislative package to obtain authority to allow us to move the statue. The legislation you are referring to is legislation that the City supported. Assuming the Governor signs the legislation, I would imagine the City would work with the Daughters of the Confederacy to actualize our adopted position.”
