The U.S. Army will resume its removal of a Confederate Memorial within the Arlington National Cemetery following a judge’s ruling Tuesday to lift a temporary injunction, the cemetery confirmed in a statement.
Following U.S. District Judge Rossie Alston’s lifting of his former temporary injunction, the U.S. Army will “immediately” resume the removal process, according to a statement from Arlington National Cemetery spokeswoman Kerry Meeker. (RELATED: Trump-Appointed Judge Halts Removal Of Confederate Monument At Arlington Cemetery)
“In accordance with this evening’s court ruling, the Army will resume the deliberate process of removing the Confederate Memorial from Arlington National Cemetery immediately. While the work is performed, surrounding graves, headstones and the landscape will be carefully protected by a dedicated team, preserving the sanctity of all those laid to rest in Section 16,” Meeker stated.
Alston had previously paused the removal process due to receiving urgent calls that claimed the gravesites near the memorial were allegedly being desecrated and disturbed by working contractors, according to NBC News. However, following a visit to the cemetery Alston stated he saw “no desecration of any graves,” the outlet reported.
“I saw no desecration of any graves,” Alston stated, according to NBC. “The grass wasn’t even disturbed.”
A Confederate memorial is to be removed from Arlington National Cemetery in the coming days, a cemetery official says. https://t.co/2ZEqXlTy9C
— NBC News (@NBCNews) December 19, 2023
The memorial being removed was built in 1914 and designed to represent the American South. It features a bronze woman with a crown of olive leaves. The woman can be seen holding a laurel wreath, plow stock and pruning hook with the base of her 32-foot pedestal stating: “They have beat their swords into plough-shares and their spears into pruning hooks.” Figures on the side of the statue also depict soldiers and slaves. (RELATED: Time Capsule Rumored To Have Picture Of Dead Abraham Lincoln Excavated From Robert E. Lee Statue, Contents Revealed)
A group called Defend Arlington, however, filed multiple lawsuits attempting to keep the statue within the cemetery, claiming it was built to promote reconciliation between the North and South, NBC News reported.
Judge Alston pushed back on the group’s claims, calling out the depiction of a “slave running after his ‘massa’ as he walks down the road.”
“What is reconciling about that?” Alston questioned the group, according to NBC News.
Although the removal will be pushed forward, Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin disagreed with the original decision to remove the memorial. Youngkin has now made arrangements for it to be moved to Virginia Military Institute at New Market Battlefield State Historical Park in the Shenandoah Valley, according to NBC News.