After Confederate monument’s removal from Lowndes County Courthouse, local leaders hope it can be replaced with positive symbol

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Crews hired by Lowndes County are in the process of cleaning out the excess concrete and covering the hole where the Confederate statues outside of the courthouse once stood.

On Saturday, Columbus Marble Works crews finished removing the statues that stood as a memorial to fallen Confederate soldiers for more than one hundred years in Downtown Columbus.

“We should come together and plot out what we want to see that would be memorialized on that corner for generations to come,” says Rep. Kabir Karriem of the Mississippi House.

That is what District 41 Representative says he would like to see from the now vacant spot outside the Lowndes County Courthouse.

“While this is a good day for Columbus and Lowndes County to get these Confederate statues removed, we still have a lot of work to do across the state,” he says.

The monument is set to be relocated to Friendship Cemetary, where 10 Union soldiers and over 2,000 Confederate soldiers are buried.

Which is where the Daughters of the Confederacy originally wanted it all along.

Built nearly 50 years after the Civil War ended, Rep. Karriem says the monument’s removal can be a teachable moment.

“To teach the community about the Confederacy and the impact that it had not only on our nation but the state of Mississippi,” he says. “And the effects that it had on people of color, particularly the African American community.”

While there is no official plan yet to build another statue outside the courthouse, Rep. Karriem says he would like to see the county replace the negative symbol with a positive one. Something that could unite all citizens of Columbus and Lowndes County.

“I’m glad that the state that is formed by removing the Confederate flag. And now it’s time for us to walk in harmony, and come up with a plan, how we will replace that negative sentiment somewhat turned into a positive one for this community.”

The county says that while the initial platform has already been built in Friendship Cemetary, they say crews need to put down more concrete before the statues can be put in place. In the meantime, Columbus Marble works is looking at doing some repairs and preservation work to the monument.