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Efforts to remove the statue of Robert E. Lee who was at the center of deadly far-right violence in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017 have been blocked in court.
The Daily Progress reported that a three-day civil trial that ended Friday included a decision preventing the removal of statues of Lee and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, both Confederate generals in the US Civil War. 1861-1865.
In August 2017, the city's planned withdrawal of Lee's statue sparked a white nationalist rally and counter-demonstrations in which a counter-protester, Heather Heyer, was killed.
The statues were covered after Heyer's death. Judge Richard Moore ordered that the blankets be removed last year.
Residents of Charlottesville filed a lawsuit against the city government for attempting to remove the statues, citing a state law protecting the war memorials several months before the "Unite the Unite" rally. Right "from August 2017.
The city said the law violates the US constitution, as these laws send a racist message.
Justice Moore ruled on Wednesday that the intent of the law was to preserve history and not to discriminate.
"I do not think I can deduce that a historic preservation status was racist," he said. "Certainly, [racism] was in their minds, but we should not judge the present law by this intention. "
The judge issued a permanent injunction preventing removal.
He also indicated that he would award the plaintiff's fees but that he would weigh the arguments before determining the amount.
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