NPR: “The statue of Robert E. Lee that sparked the deadly Unite the Right rally four years ago in Charlottesville, Va., will be removed Saturday, the city council announced Friday. Along with it, another statue of Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson that sits nearby will also be removed, though the stone bases of both statues will remain for now. Fencing around both monuments was set up Friday afternoon. What will happen to the statues after they are removed is still unknown.”
“‘City Council has the sole authority to determine the ultimate, final disposition of the statues,’ the city said in a statement. ‘The City Manager is not authorized to destroy the statues or to sell them without further action by City Council.’ The two statues will be stored in a secure location on city property until the council makes a final decision, it said. The city said it has asked museums, historical societies and battlefields about acquiring the statues for relocation. It said it has received interest from 10 groups – four of them in Virginia. The debate over what to do with the Confederate statues in Charlottesville started in 2016 and led to neo-Nazis gathering in the city for what turned into a deadly rally. Protester Heather Heyer was killed and dozens of other people were injured.”