Virginia's state capitol has moved forward with removing elements honoring Confederate generals and officials. A crew worked overnight Thursday and removed the busts of generals Stonewall Jackson, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and others, including a bronze statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee.
The Virginia State Capitol building, designed by Thomas Jefferson, was used as the Confederacy's Capitol during the Civil War.
The monuments were loaded onto a truck and taken to an unknown location on the order of Virginia House Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn. In a statement, she said: "Virginia has a story to tell that extends far beyond glorifying the Confederacy and its participants. Now is the time to provide context to our Capitol to truly tell the commonwealth’s whole history."
These are the latest Confederate symbols to be removed since the death of George Floyd under Minneapolis police custody. Virginia's capital has already removed many Confederate monuments on Richmond's historic Monument Avenue.
On Thursday, Fairfax County's school board took it a step further. The board voted to rename Robert E. Lee High School after civil rights icon John Lewis. It's new name is John R. Lewis High School and goes into effect this school year. The 80-year-old congressman died of cancer last week.
