Confederate monument removed from Jacksonville's Springfield Park early Wednesday

The long-debated fate of a Confederate monument in Springfield Park appears sealed, as crews took down two bronze statues from the park early Wednesday morning at Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan's instruction.

A crowd gathered on the sidewalk erupted in cheers during the removal of a statue of a woman in robes carrying a Confederate flag and later a statue of a woman reading to two children when crews took them from the large granite monument titled "Tribute to the Women of the Southern Confederacy."

"It's bittersweet," said Jacksonville resident Wells Todd, a leader of the Take 'Em Down Jax group formed in 2015. "Why has it taken so long to remove something that should never have been put up?"

The monument, also known as the "Women of the Southland," has stood in Springfield Park north of downtown since 1915. Deegan said it was a divisive presence that had no place in a city park.

“Symbols matter," she said. "They tell the world what we stand for and what we aspire to be. By removing the Confederate monument from Springfield Park, we signal a belief in our shared humanity. That we are all created equal. The same flesh and bones. The same blood running through our veins. The same heart and soul."

The granite structure with its columns, rotunda and roof still remains in the park after being stripped of the statues. Taking down that structure would be a much more expensive proposition.

The future of the monument has been up in the air since summer 2020 when Mayor Lenny Curry moved the statue of a Confederate soldier from a monument in Hemming Plaza, later renamed James Weldon Johnson Park in front of City Hall.

Curry later proposed the city also move the monument from Springfield Park in late 2021 but City Council withdrew the legislation without voting on it. Curry then proposed $500,000 for removing it in the 2022-23 budget. City Council kept the money but added a condition that the money couldn't be used until City Council decided whether to move it, leave it, rename it, or add historical context to it.

State legislation: All options remain for Confederate monuments after state bill dies in committee

As it turned out, the removal of the statues Wednesday didn't draw from that $500,000 pot of money.

A grant from the Jessie Ball duPont Fund and anonymous donations to 904WARD, a Jacksonville non-profit, covered the cost of removing the statues. The work also will remove a plaque and install temporary plaques over engravings in the pedestal for a total cost of $187,000, according to the city. The agreement for the work was between 904WARD and ACON Construction.

“Great cities are anchored by inclusive public spaces that welcome all," Jessie Ball duPont Fund President Mari Kuraishi said in a statement. "The Jessie Ball duPont Fund helped fund the removal of the Springfield Park Confederate statue so that our public spaces might be more welcoming and inclusive for all Jaxsons."

City General Counsel Michael Fackler said that as mayor, Deegan had the executive authority to make the decision about the monument without seeking City Council approval because the work didn't involve city money and Deegan can control the park and the monument.

“We have worked closely with procurement, public works, and parks on the approved scope of work in accordance with municipal code in how we contract for and complete these services," Fackler said.

During the campaign to replace Curry, who could not run again because of term limits, Deegan favored moving the monument and she repeated that position repeatedly since taking office July 1.

“I think it’s very, very hard to have unity in a city…if somebody has a monument up to basically a time when you weren’t even considered a person. That would be very, very difficult for you and your family to walk by that every day in your neighborhood,” Deegan said at a town hall in Mandarin in August.

State Rep. Dean Black, R-Jacksonville, filed legislation for the 2022 legislative session and again for the 2023 session to block cities from moving  Confederate and other historical memorials in the state. Gov. Ron DeSantis would have the authority to remove and fine any elected official involved in taking down such memorials.

The bill says that "an accurate and factual history belongs to all Floridians and future generations and the state has an obligation to protect and preserve such history."

Confederate statues in Florida: Bill would punish anyone removing Florida's Confederate memorials. How many have been removed?

Deegan told reporters in November that Black's legislation would not impact what she does in regard to the Springfield monument.

"Every legal entity I have spoken to about that proposed law has said to me that it's wholly unconstitutional (and) that it's a constitutional overreach," she said, adding she "cannot make decisions about this city based on threats."

Black, who is chairman of the Republican Party of Duval County, on Wednesday blasted the removal of the monument's statues, calling it a "stunning abuse of power" by Deegan. He said doing it without consulting city leaders or having a vote by City Council "is another in a long line of woke Democrats' obsession with cancel culture and tearing down history. "

"Choosing to erase our history is not 'brave,'" Black said. "It is a cowardly act done by a lawless mayor who hides under the cover of night."

City Council member Matt Carlucci, who has supported moving the monument for years, said Deegan put Jacksonville "on the right side of history. It's not an abuse of power."

"I think it's leveraging our strong mayor form of government to do the right thing," Carlucci said.

Deegan said in her statement that taking down the statues "is not in any way an attempt to erase history but to show that we’ve learned from it. That when we know better, we do better by and for each other."

"My prayer today is for our beautiful city to continue embracing unity and bending the arc of history towards justice," she said. "Let’s keep lifting as we climb.”

The crews that took down the statues entered Springfield Park at about 4:20 a.m. Wednesday and took about five hours to remove both statutes. Workers used heavy equipment to lift the statue of the woman holding the Confederate flag into the air from the top of the roof. The statue of the woman reading to two children required the installation of equipment that enabled crews to slide it off a pedestal in the middle of the rotunda.

Television reporters gave live updates while the crowd, which was entirely composed of people who supported taking down the statutes, recorded the event on their cell phones while launching "Take Em' Down" chants.

"These are members of our community that have been fighting tooth and nail to make sure we finally start healing this city, and to be among them right now to watch this happen is great," said City Council member Jimmy Peluso, whose district contains Springfield Park.

"It's beautiful progress," said Hope McMath of Take 'Em Down Jax.

She said the city still has more work to do to but "it'll be really exciting to enter 2024 to think that we don't have Confederates reigning over our public spaces in this city. I think it's a symbol of the kind of repair we needed."

Kelly Frazier, who became president of the Northside Coalition of Jacksonville after the death of her father Ben Frazier, who had lead protest rallies for moving the monument, said the organization hopes "this is truly the end for that hateful monstrosity in Springfield Park that glorifies the Confederacy."

"Right now, Ben is looking down and saying, 'Job well done,'" said Maceo George, who is active in Take 'Em Down Jax and the Northside Coalition.

A University of North Florida poll released in September showed some shift in pubic opinion in favor of moving Confederate monuments from public spaces. The UNF poll found 50% of respondents supported removal and 42% said leave them. That was a reversal from a UNF poll in February that showed 45% of respondents supporting removal and 51% opposed.

The UNF poll found the question of moving Confederate monument from public spaces split down party lines with 77% of Democrats in support and 73% of Republicans opposed. The UNF poll found voters not affiliated with either the Democratic or Republican parties favor moving the monuments with 52% in support and 35% against.

The Republican-controlled City Council has not moved over the past year to decide what the city should do about the Springfield Park monument.

The poll also found a division on racial lines about Confederate monuments as 37% of white respondents want Confederate monuments off public spaces compared to 76% of Black respondents and 60% of Hispanic respondents saying it's time to move them.

The highwater mark in public opinion for removal from public spaces came in June 2020 when 65% of Jacksonville voters wanted to see that happen.

City Council President Ron Salem said Deegan told him Wednesday morning about the removal. He said he recognizes the "complexities surrounding historical symbols."

"While understanding the desire for change, it’s crucial to ensure open dialogue and legislative oversight in an effort to promote a unified approach to addressing historical artifacts," he said.

He said in light of Fackler's opinion that Deegan had executive authority to direct removal of the statutes without going to City Council, he has asked Fackler to elaborate on what limitations exist for that executive power when private money is involved on city property.

"What else can the mayor do by raising private funds?" Salem said. "Can she pave a road? Can she take down other statues or monuments? Can she build a bridge? His (Fackler's') opinion was unique to this monument but I think it has ramifications well beyond that."

He said he also wants Fackler to explain who can provide permission for a private company to come onto city property because the contract was with 904WARD, a non-profit, rather than being with the city. Salem said he asked for the responses within a week so he can share them with City Council.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Mayor Donna Deegan orders Jacksonville Confederate monument taken down