Confederate Monument (Portsmouth, Virginia)
In August 2017, in the wake of the "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville Virginia where many white supremacist groups protested the removal of Confederate monuments, mayor of Portsmouth John Rowe called for the movement of the monument from its current location. Mayor Rowe's proposed new site for the monument is nearby Cedar Grove Cemetery where many Confederate soldiers are buried. Shortly after the mayor's announcement, a Change.org petition amassing over 30,000 signatures went viral started by a local Virginia man named Nathan Coflin to have the current monument replaced by a statue of Portsmouth native rap artist and businesswoman, Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott. This petition received national attention in many publications such as "Newsweek", CNN, "People" and "Time" magazine. On June 10, 2020 the Confederate soldier statues were beheaded by sledgehammer and one was toppled by Black Lives Matter protesters as the Police Department watched. A brass band played. One protester, Chris Green, was hit by the falling statue and sustained life-threatening injuries while standing near other people below it. On July 28, 2020, the Portsmouth City Council voted unanimously to remove the monument. On August 26, 2020, crews officially began removing the monument from Olde Towne and moving it to a undisclosed storage area. The monument has since been removed.
Calls for removal and relocation
The Confederate Monument in Portsmouth, Virginia, was built between 1876 and 1881.