Which city has more Confederate statues? Richmond, Virginia or Charleston, West Virginia
Is it the former capital of the Confederacy or the current capital of the state that broke away from Virginia?
Yes, it's a trick question.
From the New York Times, earlier today:
After more than a year of legal wrangling, one of the nation’s largest Confederate monuments — a soaring statue of Robert E. Lee, the South’s Civil War general — was hoisted off its pedestal in downtown Richmond, Va., on Wednesday morning. . . .
Its removal marked the end of the era of Confederate monuments in the city that is perhaps best known for them. Monument Avenue, the grassy boulevard where many of them stood, was a proud feature of the city’s architecture and a coveted address. But in recent years, as the city became more diverse, demographically and politically, more of its residents began to question the memorials. Now, as the last statue is taken down, many people interviewed in this once conservative Southern city said that they might not have agreed in past years, but that now their removal felt right.
The video, from NBC News:
BREAKING: Robert E. Lee statue, erected in 1890, removed from its pedestal on Monument Avenue in Richmond, Virginia. pic.twitter.com/RGRZQXDA9n
— NBC News (@NBCNews) September 8, 2021
What about Charleston, West Virginia? From the Associated Press in mid-July:
West Virginia commission punts on Confederate memorials
It begins:
West Virginia’s Capitol Building Commission met Wednesday, but did not take up the issue of whether to move a statue and bust of Confederate Gen. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson from the Capitol grounds, The Charleston Gazette-Mail reported.
And we wonder why we have difficulty attracting new residents.