Birmingham Says Monument Screen Doesn't Break Law

Plywood obstruction surrounding Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Lynn Park, Birmingham, Ala.


The city of Birmingham says it did not violate state law when it put up a plywood box around a 52-foot-tall Confederate monument in a city park.

In a court filing yesterday, the city disputed the state of Alabama’s claims that Birmingham violated a law prohibiting the removal or alteration of any monuments more than 40 years old.

City attorneys argue the plywood structure surrounding the Confederate Soldiers and Sailors monument in Linn Park did not technically remove or alter the monument. They also argue the state is trying to stifle opposition to relics that “mourn the Confederacy’s ‘lost cause’ to operate as a separate and independent nation that fosters the enslavement of African-Americans.

Birmingham mayor William Bell erected the screen last year. The state of Alabama then sued the city, claiming it violated the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act. The screen has remained in place since it was first built.

http://apr.org/post/birmingham-says-monument-screen-doesnt-break-law
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