Jacksonville, Florida, mayor has Confederate monument removed after years of controversy

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Crews removed a Confederate monument from a Jacksonville, Florida, park Wednesday morning following years of public controversy.

Mayor Donna Deegan ordered the removal of the “Tribute to the Women of the Southern Confederacy” monument, which has been in Springfield Park since 1915. She said the decision is not an attempt to erase history but to show that people have learned from it.

“Symbols matter. They tell the world what we stand for and what we aspire to be," Deegan said in a statement. “By removing the confederate monument from Springfield Park, we signal a belief in our shared humanity. That we are all created equal. The same flesh and bones. The same blood running through our veins. The same heart and soul.”

Serious discussion of the monument's fate began in 2020 after Deegan's predecessor, Mayor Lenny Curry, ordered the removal of another monument, a bronze statue of a Confederate soldier that had been in a downtown park for more than 100 years. The move came weeks after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer and on the heels of marches and other calls for social justice.

A proposal to remove the Confederate women tribute was introduced to the Jacksonville City Council in 2021, but the Republican-controlled board never moved on it. Earlier this month, Jacksonville's Office of General Counsel determined that city council approval was unnecessary because city funds were not being used for the work. As the city's top executive, Deegan, a Democrat, had the authority to order the statue's removal, city attorneys said. The $187,000 bill is being covered by a grant that the Jessie Ball duPont Fund and anonymous donors made to 904WARD, city officials said.

Florida Rep. Dean Black, who is chair of the Republican Party of Duval County, posted on social media that the monument's removal was a stunning abuse of power.

“This action, undertaken in the middle of the night, during the holidays, without consultation of city leaders or a vote by the council, is another in a long line of woke Democrats obsession with Cancel Culture and tearing down history,” Black said.

The monument will remain in city storage until members of the community and the city council can determine what to do with it, officials said.

Crews began the process of removing the Confederate statues from the "Women of the Southland" monument in Jacksonville's Springfield Park early Wednesday morning, December 27, 2023 after years of debate about the fate of the pro confederate structure. Jacksonville's Mayor Donna Deegan made removing the monument a major part of her successful campaign for mayor. [Bob Self/Florida Times-Union via AP]/The Florida Times-Union via AP)

A small crowd of spectators, many who have worked for years to get Jacksonville's Confederate monuments removed, cheer as crews prepare to remove the Confederate statues from the "Women of the Southland" monument in Jacksonville, Fla.'s Springfield Park on Wednesday morning, Dec. 27, 2023. Serious discussion of the monument's fate began in 2020 after the former mayor ordered the removal of another monument, a bronze statue of a Confederate soldier that had been in a downtown park for more than 100 years. The move came weeks after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer and on the heels of marches and other calls for social justice. (Bob Self/The Florida Times-Union via AP)

Crews began the process of removing the Confederate statues from the "Women of the Southland" monument in Jacksonville, Fla.'s Springfield Park on Wednesday morning, Dec. 27, 2023. Serious discussion of the monument's fate began in 2020 after the former mayor ordered the removal of another monument, a bronze statue of a Confederate soldier that had been in a downtown park for more than 100 years. The move came weeks after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer and on the heels of marches and other calls for social justice. (Bob Self/The Florida Times-Union via AP)

The bronze statue of a woman reading to two children is slid off it's base as it is removed from the "Women of the Southland" monument in Jacksonville, Fla.'s Springfield Park on Wednesday morning, Dec. 27, 2023. Serious discussion of the monument's fate began in 2020 after the former mayor ordered the removal of another monument, a bronze statue of a Confederate soldier that had been in a downtown park for more than 100 years. The move came weeks after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer and on the heels of marches and other calls for social justice. (Bob Self/The Florida Times-Union via AP)

The bronze statue of a woman reading to two children is lowered to the ground from the "Women of the Southland" monument in Jacksonville, Fla.'s Springfield Park on Wednesday morning, Dec. 27, 2023. Serious discussion of the monument's fate began in 2020 after the former mayor ordered the removal of another monument, a bronze statue of a Confederate soldier that had been in a downtown park for more than 100 years. The move came weeks after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer and on the heels of marches and other calls for social justice. (Bob Self/The Florida Times-Union via AP)

The bronze statue of a woman reading to two children is placed on pallets after being removed from the "Women of the Southland" monument in Jacksonville, Fla.'s Springfield Park on Wednesday morning, Dec. 27, 2023. Serious discussion of the monument's fate began in 2020 after the former mayor ordered the removal of another monument, a bronze statue of a Confederate soldier that had been in a downtown park for more than 100 years. The move came weeks after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer and on the heels of marches and other calls for social justice. (Bob Self/The Florida Times-Union via AP)

The bronze statue of a woman reading to two children is slid off it's base as it is removed from the "Women of the Southland" monument Wednesday morning. Crews began the process of removing the Confederate statues from the "Women of the Southland" monument in Jacksonville's Springfield Park early Wednesday morning, December 27, 2023 after years of debate about the fate of the pro confederate structure. Jacksonville's Mayor Donna Deegan made removing the monument a major part of her successful campaign for mayor. [Bob Self/Florida Times-Union via AP]/The Florida Times-Union via AP)

The bronze statue of a woman with a Confederate flag is moved to a waiting flatbed truck after it was removed from the top of the "Women of the Southland" monument in Jacksonville, Fla.'s Springfield Park on Wednesday morning, Dec. 27, 2023. Serious discussion of the monument's fate began in 2020 after the former mayor ordered the removal of another monument, a bronze statue of a Confederate soldier that had been in a downtown park for more than 100 years. The move came weeks after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer and on the heels of marches and other calls for social justice. (Bob Self/The Florida Times-Union via AP)

The pedestal and commemorative plaque that held the bronze statue of a women reading to two children is strapped to the bed of a flatbed truck after being removed from the "Women of the Southland" monument in Jacksonville, Fla.'s Springfield Park on Wednesday morning, Dec. 27, 2023. Serious discussion of the monument's fate began in 2020 after the former mayor ordered the removal of another monument, a bronze statue of a Confederate soldier that had been in a downtown park for more than 100 years. The move came weeks after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer and on the heels of marches and other calls for social justice. (Bob Self/The Florida Times-Union via AP)

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