Athens officials want to push Confederate monument off pedestal

Recent protests following the death of a black Minnesota man have revived long-simmering debate over whether a prominently placed Confederate monument in Athens should be ushered away from the town center and the University of Georgia’s iconic Arch.

Athens Mayor Kelly Girtz called for the monument to be moved at a Tuesday commission meeting and tasked the county attorney with finding the “most effective plan for movement” this year.

The mayor – who attended and spoke at a recent local protest – said he was struck by comments made by a recent UGA graduate who expressed her dismay over repeated crossings on Broad Street by the memorial, which pays tribute to local soldiers who died in the Civil War. Several commissioners also voiced their support for the monument’s removal.

“We believe we can move it to a location where it will be safe, and more appropriate than a prominent public space,” Girtz told the Georgia Recorder on Wednesday. “I don’t feel like we can crow about this … I’m embarrassed that it has taken this long to move it.”

Read more: https://georgiarecorder.com/2020/06/04/athens-officials-want-to-push-confederate-monument-off-pedestal/