[van id=”world/2017/04/24/new-orleans-removes-confederate-monument-orig.cnn”]
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A group opposing the removal of Confederate monuments in New Orleans says the process has been flawed from the start and that it lacks transparency. The Monumental Task Committee in a news release called the removal of a statue in the pre-dawn darkness Monday by workers wearing scarves to cover their faces "atrocious government." City officials said the Liberty Place monument was dismantled at night to avoid disruption from those who want the statues to stay. The monument, which commemorates whites who tried to topple a biracial post-Civil War government in New Orleans, was hauled away in pieces around 5:35 a.m. Monday. There are plans to remove three other monuments in the near future. City officials won't say when that will happen in order to keep workers safe. However, New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu says the city won't be deterred in its plans to remove three more Confederate monuments, but won't say when that will happen to protect the workers since there have been threats. At a Monday morning news conference, Landrieu said the monument taken down in the pre-dawn darkness Monday had been erected to honor the killing of police officers by white supremacists. The mayor said "we will no longer allow the Confederacy to literally be put on a pedestal in the heart of our city." The Liberty Place monument taken down Monday was an 1891 obelisk honoring the Crescent City White League, which tried to overthrow a biracial Reconstruction government in New Orleans after the Civil War. Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
