A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order to block the removal of the Reconciliation Monument, also known as the Confederate Memorial, from Arlington National Cemetery.
This follows a lawsuit claiming that its removal would damage the graves of Confederate soldiers buried around the memorial.
The lawsuit argues that the monument’s removal would desecrate and likely destroy it, impeding its eligibility for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. (Trending: Assault Weapons Ban Set To Take Effect, Here’s What To Know)
U.S. District Judge Rossie Alston’s order prevents “any acts to deconstruct, tear down, remove, or alter the object of this case.”
“The removal will desecrate, damage, and likely destroy the Memorial longstanding at ANC as a grave marker and impede the Memorial’s eligibility for listing on the National Register of Historic Places,” the lawsuit read.
The monument, seen as a symbol of reconciliation, was designed by a prominent sculptor and is situated at the center of the graves of Confederate soldiers.
A group of House Republicans has also opposed the removal, stating that the monument commemorates reconciliation and national unity, rather than the Confederacy.
“Despite bipartisan support for this monument, the Naming Commission, established by the Fiscal Year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, clearly overstepped its legislative authority when it recommended that the Department of the Army remove the Reconciliation Monument from Arlington National Cemetery,” 44 Republicans wrote.
“[T]he Reconciliation Monument does not honor nor commemorate the Confederacy; the memorial commemorates reconciliation and national unity.”
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