Plan advances to alter name of Edmund Pettus Bridge
Alabama lawmakers on Tuesday advanced legislation that would alter the name of Selma’s Edmund Pettus Bridge to honor those who were beaten on the bridge as they marched for civil rights in 1965. The Alabama Senate voted 23-3 for legislation that would change the official name to the “Edmund W. Pettus-Foot Soldiers Bridge.” However, the lettering on the famous bridge would remain unaltered. The name “Foot Soldiers” would be on a separate sign that would include a silhouette of the marchers. The bill dubbed the “Healing History Act,” now moves to the Alabama House of Representatives with three meeting days remaining in the legislative session. The bridge in 1940 was named after Pettus, a Confederate general and reputed Ku Klux Klan leader. However, 25 years later, it became an enduring symbol of the civil rights movement after marchers were beaten by law enforcement officers on the bridge in 1965. The melee became known as Bloody Sunday and helped lead to passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. “Not a single letter would be touched. It would stay intact in its historical context. And at the same time… honor the history that is there and the history that came out of it,” said state Sen. Malika Sanders-Fortier, a Democrat from Selma. Through the years, some have proposed changing the name of the bridge, including a push to name it for the late U.S. Rep. John Lewis. The Georgia congressman was one of the demonstrators beaten on the bridge in 1965. Sanders-Fortier said many who marched for civil rights in her community do not want the bridge name changed entirely because of what the bridge has come to represent. State Sen. Gerald Allen, the author of a state law forbidding the removal and renaming of longstanding monuments and memorials, voted against the name alteration. The Alabama Memorial Preservation Act was approved as some cities began taking down Confederate monuments and emblems. Allen said the name of the Edmund Pettus Bridge is famous across the world. “If you add to it, you change it,” Allen said. The bill also would steer funds to provide for the commissioning and protection of new monuments and the preservation of sites that have significance to Alabama history. Sanders-Fortier said it is important to honor all of the state’s history and “to heal from our past so we can move forward as a state.” “Many of the events in our state’s history have been traumatizing, been traumatizing to African-American folk to Indigenous folk to white folk,” she said, adding that healing means considering the “hurt of each group.” Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Bill seeks higher fines for taking down Confederate statues
A legislative committee advanced a proposal Tuesday to increase the fines on cities that take down Confederate monuments in Alabama. The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee advanced a bill by Republican Sen. Gerald Allen of Tuscaloosa that would increase the fine for violating the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act, which prohibits the removal and renaming of monuments and memorials that have stood for at least 40 years. The bill would increase the fine from a $25,000 one-time fee to a $5,000 per day fine that would accumulate until the monument is replaced. Allen said he believed the heftier fine would serve as a deterrent. Some Alabama cities have opted to pay the current $25,000 fine as part of the cost of taking down a Confederate monument “The fine will stay there until the monument, statue, street sign — whatever it may be — is replaced,” Allen told the committee. Sen. Linda Coleman-Madison, a Democrat from Birmingham, said she believed the $5,000 daily fine was excessive, particularly for smaller cities. “You are going up and up and up and up, and now you are in the punitive stage,” Coleman-Madison said of the total fines a city could face. While the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act does not mention Confederate monuments, it was enacted as some Southern states and cities began removing monuments and emblems of the Confederacy. Birmingham and several other cities have been fined under the law for taking down Confederate monuments. Most recently, the Alabama attorney general’s office told Montgomery officials that the city faces a $25,000 fine for renaming Jeff Davis Avenue for Fred Gray, a famed civil rights attorney who represented Rosa Parks and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. The bill also calls for the Alabama Historical Commission to design, construct and place a statue of the late civil rights leader John Lewis by the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma. Lewis, a native of Alabama who became a long-serving Georgia congressman, was beaten by state troopers on the bridge in a melee known as Bloody Sunday. The committee also advanced a bill that would make it a felony offense, punishable by up to 20 years in prison, to damage a historic monument while “participating in a riot, aggravated riot, or unlawful assembly.” Both bills now move to the full Alabama Senate. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Montgomery faces fine, lawsuit for dropping Confederate name
Alabama’s capital city last month removed the Confederate president’s name from an avenue and renamed it after a lawyer known for his work during the civil rights movement. Now the state attorney general says the city must pay a fine or face a lawsuit for violating a state law protecting Confederate monuments and other longstanding memorials. Montgomery last month changed the name of Jeff Davis Avenue to Fred D. Gray Avenue. Gray, who grew up on that same street, represented Rosa Parks and others in cases that fought Deep South segregation practices and was dubbed by Martin Luther King Jr. as “the chief counsel for the protest movement.” The Alabama attorney general’s office sent a Nov. 5 letter to Montgomery officials saying the city must pay a $25,000 fine by Dec. 8, “otherwise, the attorney general will file suit on behalf of the state.” Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed said changing the name was the right thing to do. “It was important that we show, not only our residents here, but people from afar that this is a new Montgomery,” Reed, the city’s first Black mayor said in a telephone interview. It was Reed’s suggestion to rename the street after Gray. “We want to honor those heroes that have fought to make this union as perfect as it can be. When I see a lot of the Confederate symbols that we have in the city, it sends a message that we are focused on the lost cause as opposed to those things that bring us together under the Stars and Stripes.” The Alabama Memorial Preservation Act forbids the removal or alteration of monuments and memorials — including a memorial street or memorial building — that have stood for more than 40 years. While the law does not specifically mention memorials to the Confederacy, lawmakers approved the measure in 2017 as some cities began taking down Confederate monuments. Violations carry a $25,000 fine. Mike Lewis, a spokesman for Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, declined to comment on the letter to the city. This is the first time the law is being used regarding a street name change, he said. The all-Republican Alabama Supreme Court in 2019 reversed a circuit judge’s ruling that declared the law an unconstitutional violation of the free speech rights of local communities. Reed said they knew this was a possibility when the city renamed the street. Donors from across the country have offered to pay the fine for the city. He said they are also considering taking the matter to court. “The other question we have to answer is: Should we pay the fine when we see it as an unjust law?” Reed said. “We’re certainly considering taking the matter to court because it takes away home rule for municipalities.” Alabama’s capital city is sometimes referred to as the “Cradle of the Confederacy” because it is where representatives of states met in 1861 to form the Confederacy, and the city served as the first Confederate capital. The city also played a key role in the civil rights movement — including the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The Montgomery County school system has voted to rename high schools named for Davis and Confederate General Robert E. Lee — although the names have not yet been changed. Several cities have just opted to take down Confederate monuments and pay the $25,000 fine. The state recently collected a $25,000 fine after suing officials in Huntsville, where the county removed a Confederate memorial outside the county courthouse last year. Marshall last year issued a video message chiding local officials that they are breaking the law with monument removals. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Huntsville schools ask state about renaming Lee High School
The public school system in Huntsville has agreed to ask Alabama’s attorney general whether it can rename a school honoring Gen. Robert E. Lee without violating a state law meant to protect Confederate memorials and monuments. News outlets reported that board members during a meeting Tuesday authorized their attorney to seek an opinion about whether such a move would conflict with the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act, which carries a $25,000 fine. Passed in 2017 when rebel monuments were being challenged nationwide, the law prohibits the removal, alteration, or renaming of any monument that’s located on public property which has been in place at least 40 years. Board attorney Chris Pape said Lee High School moved into a new building in 2012, the law shouldn’t apply. But one baseball field remains from the school’s original 1957 location, so the system is asking Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office if “that one piece is enough to make the act apply,” Pape said. Superintendent Christie Finley announced a proposal to rename the school in June. Huntsville is in Madison County, which paid the $25,000 penalty to the state after removing a Confederate monument from outside the courthouse last year. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Lawmakers punt on repeal of law about Confederate monuments
Alabama lawmakers on Wednesday delayed action on a proposal to repeal protections for Confederate monuments and instead let cities give the statues to the state archives or another entity for preservation. The House Judiciary Committee sent the bill to a subcommittee for study. It is unclear when the bill would return for a vote. The bill by Democratic Rep. Juandalynn Givan of Birmingham would repeal the 2017 Alabama Memorial Preservation Act which forbids taking down longstanding monuments. Givan said her proposal would allow local governments to donate unwanted historic statues and monuments to the state archives or another entity for preservation. The 2017 law, which was approved as some cities began taking down Confederate monuments, forbids the removal or alteration of monuments more than 40 years old. Violations carry a $25,000 fine. Some cities have opted to take down Confederate monuments and just pay the $25,000 fine. “People want to have the authority to move these monuments without being taxed $25,000,” Givan said after the meeting. Democratic Rep. Merika Coleman of Pleasant Grove said Givan’s bill would put the monuments in a “spot where they actually could be preserved and not destroyed.” A Republican lawmaker is seeking to strengthen the law and increase the penalty on violators. Rep. Mike Holmes of Wetumpka filed a bill that would increase the fine from a flat $25,000 to $10,000 a day. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Birmingham Mayor criticizes Alabama law protecting Confederate monument
Woodfin made the comments the same day lawmakers debated a proposal to increase fines for violating the law.
Supreme Court won’t reconsider Confederate monument ruling
The monument was first covered in 2017.
Alabama Confederate statue law to stay in effect amid appeal
An Alabama law that prohibits cities from removing Confederate monuments will remain in effect while the state appeals a judge’s ruling that declared the statute constitutional, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled Friday. Justices granted the request of Attorney General Steve Marshall to stay a judge’s order striking down the law, Marshall’s office announced. “The Supreme Court’s stay allows the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act to remain in effect until the Supreme Court resolves this appeal over the act’s constitutionality,” Marshall said in a statement. Marshall said he believes a judge erred when he ruled the law unconstitutional. The 2017 Alabama Memorial Preservation Act prohibits relocating, removing, altering or renaming public buildings, streets and memorials that have been standing for more than 40 years. Cities can be fined for violations. Jefferson County Circuit Judge Michael Graffeo last month ruled that the law violates the free speech rights of local communities and declared it void. The state law doesn’t specifically mention Confederate monuments, but it was enacted as some Southern states and cities began removing such monuments and emblems. Alabama sued the city of Birmingham in 2017 after officials erected a wooden box that obscured the view of a 52-foot-tall (16-meter-tall) obelisk honoring Confederate veterans. In his order declaring the law unconstitutional, Graffeo said it was indisputable that most citizens in the majority black city are “repulsed” by the memorial. He rejected the state’s claims that lawmakers had the power to protect historical monuments statewide. Justices on Friday also agreed to stay any fines against Birmingham as the court case plays out over the law’s constitutionality. Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
NAACP slams Kay Ivey’s Confederate monuments campaign ad
The Alabama NAACP is taking a stand against Gov. Kay Ivey‘s most recent campaign ad highlighting her support of protecting the state’s Confederate monument. The group met at the capitol in Montgomery, Ala. Saturday afternoon to condemn the ad. “We’re upset about her using this campaign ad to attract voters to tell people why they should vote for her,” said Benard Simelton, the president of the Alabama NAACP, according to CNN. Silmelton believes there are a lot of other things Ivey could have made “the hallmark of her campaign.” “There are a lot of others things she could have made the hallmark of her campaign– education, our horrible criminal justice system. She could have talked about those things that are very, very important to the state of Alabama,” Simelton added. The ad in question was released by Ivey’s campaign last Tuesday as part of her election bid for a full-term as Governor. In the 30-second spot, Ivey says “when special interests wanted to tear down our historical monuments, I said no!” In response she signed a law to protect the monuments. The law, the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act, which preserves all historical monuments on public property that have been in place for at least 40 years, was passed in May 2017. Ivey’s campaign is defending the ad saying it “we shouldn’t … tear down history.” “Our ad highlights a law that was passed by the legislature and signed by the governor to protect all of our historical monuments. We can’t, and we shouldn’t change, erase or tear down history. We should learn from all of it,” the campaign said in a statement.
Kay Ivey campaign ad praises controversial Confederate monument law
Governor Kay Ivey on Tuesday released a campaign praising a controversial law she signed prohibiting the removal of Confederate monuments in Alabama. In the 30-second spot, Ivey says “when special interests wanted to tear down our historical monuments, I said no!” In response she signed a law to protect the monuments. “We can’t change or erase our history, but here in Alabama, we know something Washington doesn’t — to get where we’re going means understanding where we’ve been,” she says in the ad as the camera pans around the Confederate memorial outside the state capitol building in Montgomery, Ala. On May 25, 2017, Ivey signed into law the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act, which preserves all historical monuments on public property that have been in place for at least 40 years. Ivey’s campaign said the ad is slated to run statewide for a week. Ivey faces Huntsville mayor Tommy Battle, State Sen. Bill Hightower and Evangelist Scott Dawson in the June 5 Republican primary. The winner will go on to face the Democratic nominee in the general election, to be selected among: Tuscaloosa mayor Walt Maddox; former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Sue Bell Cobb, along with Christopher Countryman, James Fields, Doug Smith and Anthony White in the June 5 Democratic primary. Watch the ad below:
AG Steve Marshall files suit against city of Birmingham, Mayor William Bell
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall announced Wednesday that his office has filed suit in Jefferson County Circuit Court against the City of Birmingham and Mayor William Bell for violating state law by constructing barriers to deliberately obscure a Confederate monument in the city’s downtown Linn Park. “In accordance with the law, my office has determined that by affixing tarps and placing plywood around the Linn Park Memorial such that it is hidden from view, the Defendants have ‘altered’ or ‘otherwise disturbed’ the memorial in violation of the letter and spirit of the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act,” said Marshall. “The City of Birmingham does not have the right to violate the law and leaves my office with no choice but to file suit.” The Alabama Memorial Preservation Act, was passed by state lawmakers earlier this year and signed into law by Gov. Kay Ivey. It prohibits the removal of historic statues more than 40 years old from public spaces. The Confederate monument in question in Linn Park was dedicated in 1905, and thus is protected by the law.
Alabama House to vote on confederate monuments bill
A bill to block historic monuments from being altered or removed without lawmaker approval is getting a vote in the Alabama House. SB60, otherwise known as the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act, was introduced by Tuscaloosa-Republican state Sen. Gerald Allen and was approved by the state Senate in late March and passed the State Government Committee in the House of Representatives earlier this month. Now, the bill is scheduled for a Thursday vote by the full House, which would “prohibit the relocation, removal, alteration, renaming, or other disturbance of monuments located on public property which have been in place for 20 or more years.” Similar legislation has been introduced since 2015, when then-Gov. Robert Bentley removed Confederate flags from Capitol grounds. The vote was fast-tracked, coming days after a Confederate statue in New Orleans was taken down. There are currently more than a dozen Confederate memorials sprinkled across the Yellowhammer State.
