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NEW ORLEANS TOOK down the first of four controversial Confederate monuments under cover of darkness early Monday morning, the latest removal of a widely perceived racist symbol of white supremacy in the South.
Workers arrived around 1.30am to remove the Battle of Liberty Place statue, an obelisk first erected in 1891 to commemorate a failed rebellion against a racially integrated government following the Civil War.
“The removal of these statues sends a clear and unequivocal message to the people of New Orleans and the nation: New Orleans celebrates our diversity, inclusion and tolerance,” Mayor Mitch Landrieu said in a statement this week.
“The decision to remove these statues was made after a lengthy public process,” it added.
The timing of the unannounced removal was designed to minimize protests by vocal opponents who had been staging vigils, the authorities said.
Intimidation and threats
Some city officials in the majority African-American city say they have received death threats.
“The intimidations and threats from people who don’t want this monument down has been intense,” Landrieu said during a news conference on Tuesday, adding that a car belonging to a contractor hired to remove the statue had been set on fire.
Workers removing the monument wore flak jackets and helmets as police snipers observed from the roof of a nearby parking garage.
The city will remove three more statues — to Confederate Generals Robert E Lee and PGT Beauregard and Confederate States of America President Jefferson Davis — in coming days after a court struck down legal challenges.
The monuments will be relocated to “a place where they can be put in historical context,” the city said.
“This is about showing the whole world that we as a city and as a people are able to acknowledge, understand, reconcile — and most importantly — choose a better future,” Landrieu said. “We can remember these divisive chapters in our history in a museum or other facility where they can be put in context — and that’s where these statues belong.”
The mayor had issued an order calling for the four monuments to be relocated in February 2015 after the city council approved the plan in a 6-1 vote.
In June that year, a white supremacist fatally shot nine African-American parishioners at a black church in South Carolina, prompting a national debate over Confederate symbols in the formerly slave-owning South.
‘Blatant affront’
South Carolina took down the Confederate flag from its statehouse soon after. The University of Mississippi also removed its state flag, which included the Confederate emblem.
But other institutions are still debating similar moves.
The Liberty Monument is considered the most controversial of the four New Orleans monuments. A plaque the city added in 1932 said the United States had “recognized white supremacy in the South” since the Civil War.
“Of the four we will remove, this statue is perhaps the most blatant affront to the values that make America and New Orleans strong today,” Landrieu said.
New Orleans removed the obelisk from its location on central Canal Street more than two decades ago. Challenged by a lawsuit, officials put it back up at its latest, less prominent spot.
Critics say the Confederate monuments should remain because they are part of the city’s history.
But Landrieu said their removal was an important step for understanding history.
“The whole point of the confederacy was to deny the future of the United States of America and the values of this nation,” he said. “We’re reclaiming that today.”
- © AFP 2017.
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Jesus Christ, hopefully he makes a full recovery, lot of people are driving like crazy nowadays.
@Anthony Burke: How do you know this accident had anything to do with driving standards?
@Anthony Burke: A bit harsh to start shifting the blame when you haven’t a clue of the circumstances.
@John O Brien: typical defensive attitude. Put it this way – it doesn’t matter if it was a pedestrian, cyclist, dog or other car that was in the way, no-one should be driving at such a speed that they can’t stop for any of these, especially when there are no cars on the road. If a child is airlifted to hospital after “a collision between two vehicles”, you can be sure the other vehicle wasn’t paying enough attention.
@John O Brien: agree! I see 11 year old cyclists speeding every day! NOT!
speedy recovery little man!
@Brynþór Patrekursson: so if the car was driving 50km on a 50km road and a person/child/cat/dog came out in front of your bumper it’s the drivers fault for not being able to stop on time?
Quick and full recovery for the child and hopefully the driver is ok too(if not at fault).
@Anthony Burke: I was going to my local shop today in a rural spot and a ups driver nearly came up on the path. He was going way too fast in a village with a 50km,ph limit. Must have been been going 90/100 . He was on 2 wheels going around the bend.
@Aviationdub: It could be, if 50 km was not an appropriate speed to be driving at, given the conditions. E.g, driving past a football match, funeral, etc just after the event has ended. Obviously, the other cyclist, pedestrian, etc has some responsibility (unless they’re 5 years old). If a person parachutes down in front of the car, saying the driver was at fault would be unreasonable.
@Aviationdub: yes, you are supposed to anticipate hazards. You slow down on bends and anywhere you can’t see a good distance ahead.
Also pedestrians have been crazy on the roads recently. Well the country roads, they are walking in the middle of the road sometimes in twos and threes very dangerous. They probably think they’re ok as there is not much traffic on the roads but one car can do a lot of damage to a pedestrian.
@lunadoran: perhaps drivers should drive to the conditions and the road. Those twos and threes could just as easily be a person with a double buggy, an oncoming tractor, a person on a horse, etc ……. Saying 2 or 3 pedestrians are dangerous is poor show for driver
@Eoin Scanlon: Walking 2 or 3 abreast on a country road is poor judgement. Maybe you should think of any poor person who rounds a bend and has insufficient time to avoid a collision. It’s not always the driver’s fault.
@lunadoran: Jeesus! – they’re supposed to be on the road. No excuses during a pandemic where cars are down 95% and everyone knows pedestrians and cyclists have to keep bigger distances apart. Far, far, too many unnecessary journeys by arrogant individuals, especially in rural areas. And arrogant individuals mixed with cars result in injuries like this.
@lunadoran: Slow down! Where are these people supposed to walk? Their are no pavements on a lot of rural roads.
@lunadoran: its actually safer to cycle /walk in the middle of the road.
Get well soon .. You are in my prayers young man
Praying you recover, God bless you and your family
Drivers are exploiting the pandemic to drive like total maniacs. Speeding up more than 50%. The roads are getting out of control .
@Bob Moore: also noticing a lot of cyclists completely ignoring traffic lights at busy junctions due to lack of traffic.. and not taking any real time to look in all directions!!
@Lydia McLoughlin: make sure you get the anti cyclists jibe on an article about a poor 11 year old smashed by a car
@Lydia McLoughlin: Really bad form Lydia. Think next time before you post. Cyclists don’t kill thousands of people around the world every year
This boy was innocently riding his bike.
Very, very insensitive of you. Cop on.
@Eoin Scanlon: I’m a cyclist and a driver. I find both your comments to be poorly timed. There are plenty of bad drivers, plenty of bad cyclists and plenty of pedestrians who practise poor judgement. My thoughts are with this child and his family at this moment in time.
Incredibly small minded people writing comments. I hope this poor 11 year old child makes a full recovery and thoughts and prayers with both his family and that of the driver. A bit of humanity goes along way over arguing with strangers getting insignificant jibes in. Roads are for everyone. Everyone who uses them has a responsibility for their own safety as well as that of other users. It doesn’t make every driver, cyclist or pedestrian involved in an accident open to idiotic comments by people who have no idea of the circumstances.
@Sandra Whelehan: agree Sandra.. but with great (horse) power comes great(er) responsibility. You can’t say an 11 year old on a bicycle is is responsible for his/her own safety. It’s up to us adults who drive to look out for other road users.
@Alan Kelly: Of course he’s responsible for his own safety if he’s on a road. What a strange thing to say.
@Johnny 5: hand in your driving license at your nearest Garda Station please.
@Alan Kelly: I know of a young girl (family member of my mams best friend) who literally ran out in front of a car, the car was going about 30km speed at tops, her friends all ran across the main road and she followed a couple of minutes later, ran from behind a parked car without looking. Anyways the car hit her, the way she landed on the road unfortunately gave her fatal injuries.
The poor car driver was never the same, he actually became very good friends with the young girls mam and they helped each other through the grief.
At the end of the day, it was a tragic accident pure and simple and there was no way of avoiding it. Moral of the story, accidents happen and it’s not always the drivers fault.
Hopefully the young lad makes a full and quick recovery.
@Aviationdub: yeah that can happen…that’s why you should always drive slowly past parked cars. As you approach cars, look for pedestrians feet under the parked cars. Same goes for buses at bus stops, watch out for passengers alighting and crossing the road in front of the bus! Like I said..when driving, we have a greater responsibility to look out for more vulnerable road users.
@Alan Kelly: So I should avert my attention from the road in front and look to see whether I can see feet under a parked car? Surely then I’m more at risk of knocking a pedestrian down coming from the other side? Maybe, just maybe all road users should learn the rules of the road? You’re basically saying all drivers should drive at 20 kms per hour because pedestrians are eejits.
@Johnny 5: you could look 5 times while approaching a parked and still not see a child dart out at the last second, thats even going at 20km. As I said freak accidents can happen and will always happen, we will never be able to stop it unfortunately.
@Johnny 5: Should we examine your 20 km/h proposal further? It might improve road safety.
@Johnny 5: no, just drive with due care and attention.
@Sandra Whelehan: well said.
@Sandra Whelehan: every time there is a crime which justifiably opens debate, people say “now is not the time- let people grieve”. Mass shootings for example.
@Alan Kelly: can I keep my license so?
Incredibly narrow country road but quite straight in places which inclines some motorists to drive too fast. Know the area very well
Don’t have to be speeding to injure an 11 year old.
Get well soon ☘️
A little boy is fighting for his life and look at most of the comments. People bickering about who is to blame and not one of you knows the facts. You all should be ashamed of yourselves. Please God little Daithi makes a full recovery
@Decko49: Exactly……..a child of 11 in 5th class in primary school. Hope he makes a full recover.
I live in the country and around every corner is more people out walking than ive ever seen before, drivers need to really slow down on small roads particularly, i worry for them when I see them walking, just takes one ejit to wreck a family…
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