MONUMENT

Two unsuccessful bidders for the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee that drew violent protesters to Charlottesville have filed a letter protesting the city's process to get rid of the statue, which ended last week in the acceptance of a proposal to melt it down and turn it into new art.

Millions of U.S. workers now have a Jan. 4 deadline to get a COVID vaccine.

A top European Union court has annulled the EU’s approval of 3.4 billion euros ($4.1 billion) in state aid for the Dutch carrier KLM.

A top European Union court dealt another blow to Ryanair on Wednesday and rejected the low-cost carrier’s arguments that the aid Sweden, Denmark and Finland gave two other airlines to get through the COVID-19 crisis was illegal.

FINCASTLE, Va. – The plan to move a Confederate monument in Botetourt County is moving forward. The monument, which is currently in front of the Botetourt County Courthouse, will likely be moved not too far away. On Tuesday, the county’s board of supervisors unanimously accepted a committee’s recommendation to move it a few hundred yards away from its current location to the Botetourt County History Museum and add a plaque to provide historical context. Before any move can happen a public hearing will need to take place. That hearing has not yet been scheduled.

The Confederate monument outside Franklin County’s courthouse is staying put. Officials voted on Tuesday to keep the monument, which stands outside the courthouse in Rocky Mount, in place. This comes after voters weighed in on a nonbinding referendum, with more than half voting to leave the statue instead of moving it to a museum or other historical site. Some of the supervisors talked about the possibility of putting a plaque near the monument to add context during Tuesday’s meeting, but the board pushed that discussion to a later date.

ROANOKE, Va. – Roanoke’s monument to Robert E. Lee is getting a new home. On Monday, the Roanoke City Council decided to accept the proposal submitted by Evergreen Burial Park, which would move the obelisk there. Lee monument down on groundThe park is requesting that the city also move the base and pedestal from Lee Plaza to the park. “We think Evergreen Burial Park is a logical place for the Lee Monument, we have 60 Confederate veterans at Evergreen, we have a Union soldier buried at Evergreen," Wilson said. “We believe the Lee monument has a story of its own to tell, how it came to be, how it came to be removed, and how it came to come to Evergreen now," Wilson said.

RICHMOND, Va. – A Richmond judge heard arguments Thursday but said he would not immediately issue a ruling in a lawsuit over Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam's plans to remove an enormous statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. Richmond Circuit Court Judge W. Reilly Marchant said the matter was of great importance and said he would issue a written ruling later. Northam's administration has been readying plans to remove the enormous statue - should the court clear the way- from a soaring pedestal. The 21-foot-high equestrian statue, which the state has said weighs about 12 tons, sits atop a pedestal nearly twice that tall.

ROANOKE, Va. – The fate of the Robert E. Lee monument in downtown Roanoke remains unseen but the process to figure that out is well underway. On Monday, the Roanoke City Council started the process in possibly removing the monument from Lee Plaza. This motion also set up a public hearing on the matter. The Robert E. Lee monument has been in Lee Plaza for just shy of 60 years. I just encourage everyone to be patient.”The public hearing is tentatively set for August 17 at 7 p.m.

RICHMOND, Va. – Richmond is wasting no time removing a Confederate monument. On July 1, localities gained the power to remove, relocate, contextualize, or cover any monument or memorial for war veterans on the locality’s public property. However, the new law requires a process, which is not happening here. Due to the state of emergency that Richmond is currently under, Mayor Levar Stoney said it’s within his power to remove the statue as he believes is poses a safety risk.

ROANOKE, Va. – Tennessee is home to many Confederate statues; however, someone has put out a petition to change that. Rather than honor Confederate soldiers, a new petition is asking to have statues of country music superstar Dolly Parton replace the existing statues. According to The Tennessean, there are about 70 Confederate statues in the Volunteer State. Here’s the description Parsons wrote up for the petition:"Tennessee is littered with statues memorializing confederate officers. Instead, let us honor a true Tennessee hero, Dolly Parton.

Ralph Northam has both "the authority and the moral obligation" to remove a massive statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond, Attorney General Mark Herring's office said in a court filing Wednesday. It came after Richmond Circuit Court Judge Bradley B. Cavedo issued an injunction Monday preventing Northams administration from removing the statue for 10 days. The lawsuit was filed by William C. Gregory, a descendant of two signatories to the deed. Named as defendants are Northam and the director of the Department of General Services, the agency tasked with handling the removal. The filing requests a copy of the transcript from Monday's proceedings, which attorneys for the state were not a party to.

RICHMOND, Va. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam took to Twitter on Tuesday afternoon to respond to a 10-day injunction preventing the removal of the Robert E. Lee monument in Richmond. Make no mistake: it will come down. pic.twitter.com/bPw1StZRLl Ralph Northam (@GovernorVA) June 9, 2020Make no mistake: it will come down.Those are the words the governor has for those who are fighting for the statue to remain in its place. Last Thursday, Northam announced that he would remove the statue as soon as possible from its prominent location in Richmond.

EDS NOTE: OBSCENITY - An inspection crew from the Virginia Department of General Services inspect the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee on Monument Avenue Monday June. Ralph Northam’s administration from removing an iconic statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee for 10 days. It is in the public interest to await resolution of the case on the merits prior to removal of the statue, the order says. Northam has said the enormous Lee statue would be removed “as soon as possible” and his administration would seek public input about its future. Richmond’s city council has affirmed unanimous support for removing the other four, according to The Richmond Times-Dispatch.

RICHMOND, Va. – As Virginia moves forward with the removal of the Robert E. Lee statue in Richmond, one professor of history education says it doesn't belong in a public space. Dr. Gabriel Reich says the ‘Lost Cause’ narrative began after the Civil War. He said knowing what we know now, the Confederate statue doesn’t belong on public property. “When we allow the continued presence of monuments in our public spaces that are hostile to a large portion of our population, and in this case African Americans in Virginia, that we are sending a message about who counts and whose voices count in our public spaces. Five of the six statues on Monument Avenue pay tribute to the Confederacy.

After Stoney spoke for a bit, he left the podium to Northam, who announced the decision to remove the Robert E. Lee statue from its prominent place in Richmond. Robert E. Lee statue in Richmond Shayne Dwyer is live at Richmond's Robert E. Lee statue where a crowd is growing following Gov. Posted by WSLS 10 / WSLS.com on Thursday, June 4, 2020On Thursday morning, Northam discussed Virginia’s history and the history of the statue of Robert E. Lee in Richmond. The department released this statement Thursday afternoon:“Governor Ralph Northam today directed the Department of General Services to remove the state-owned Robert E. Lee Monument in Richmond. Robert E. Lee IV, a distant nephew of the Confederate general, Robert Johns and Zyahna Bryant spoke during the news conference.

HOPEWELL, Va. - Now is your chance to be a blood-thirsty zombie -- and get paid for it. "Monument," AMC's "Walking Dead" spinoff, will be filming in Hopewell next month, according to NBC 12. The show is set to start with a plane crash, so a 737 fuselage will be set up on Hopewell Street for filming from July 30 to August 15. Extras are also needed for other locations to be used through November 2019. For more information on how to apply, see the post below:Copyright 2019 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.