Statues to Confederacy in its ex-capital spur soul-searching

Many took home pieces of the rope they used as souvenirs, so beloved was Lee as a top Confederate commander and native Virginia son.

Mayor Levar Stoney recently announced he thinks the monuments should stay put but appointed a commission to study adding historical context, likely with new signs or new statues.

“Equal parts myth and deception, they were ... a false narrative etched in stone and bronze more than 100 years ago — not only to lionize the architects and defenders of slavery — but to perpetuate the tyranny and terror of Jim Crow and reassert a new era of white supremacy,” the 36-year-old, first-term mayor said.

Elsewhere on the broad avenue lined with mansions and tony apartments are statues to Confederate President Jefferson Davis, generals J.E.B. Stuart and Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson and Confederate naval officer Matthew Maury.