Could Mississippi's Confederate statues in Washington DC be replaced?

Several Mississippi Republican lawmakers are now seeking to replace Confederate statues representing the state in Washington, D.C. just weeks after Arkansas installed a statue of a civil rights activist next to Mississippi’s Jefferson Davis.

During the 2024 session, several bills were introduced to replace or establish a commission to find replacements for Davis, U.S. senator and, most importantly, president of the Confederate States of America, and James Z. George, Confederate politician, military officer and homonym. of George County. However, those bills died without even being introduced in the House or Senate Rules Committees.

Meanwhile, the statues have been on display for about 100 years in the Statuary Hall of the United States Congress. Davis’ statue now stands next to that of Daisy Bates of Arkansas, a black civil rights leader involved in the integration of Little Rock’s Central High School, among many other efforts. The juxtaposition of the two is remarkable.

House Rules Committee Chairman Fred Shanks, R-Brandon, who previously declined to comment on a related report in February, told the Clarion Ledger on Tuesday that he plans to take up the charter change in the 2025 session.

More on efforts for 2024Removal of Confederate symbols pushed by Mississippi Democrats at the state Capitol, Washington DC

“It’s a big deal and it’s going to be an extremely hot topic,” Shanks said. “I wanted some time to look at it when we don’t have other big things impacting the state like we did last session.”

Senate Rules Chairman Dean Kirby, R-Pearl, did not respond to several calls and messages seeking comment, nor did House Speaker Jason White, R-West. Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann’s staff declined to comment.

Sen. Nicole Boyd, R-Oxford, told the Clarion Ledger that she has been quietly working on this legislation for a few years and plans to introduce a tourism-related outside group to lobby, advocate and lead efforts to replace Davis and George with more modern historical depictions of Mississippi.

“It’s not about who’s going down. It’s about who we can put in there,” Boyd said. “It’s about what are the things that we want to promote in the state and that we want to use as tourism to attract people.”

Senate Minority Leader Derrick Simmons said he believes he has bipartisan support.

“Although this effort has been made by Democrats, Democrats and Republicans want to honor someone who is most representative of modern Mississippi,” said Simmons, who is from Greenville.

Several other House and Senate Democrats had harsh words for Republican leaders who until now had waited only to address the statues.

“This shows that the leaders of those various committees had the opportunity to review that legislation, but they turned away and stopped doing the right thing,” said Rep. Chris Bell, D-Jackson.

Sen. David Blount, D-Jackson, said the state can simply do better than having Davis and George represent the state in the Capitol.

“I anticipate we will introduce this bill again. It establishes a commission to study who best represents Mississippi,” he said. “There are a number of controversial topics that go to the Rules Committee and it’s generally not the place for controversial topics, and I understand that, but this is important.”

What is Statuary Hall and who is Daisy Bates?

Statuary Hall was established in the United States Congressional Capitol building in 1807, but was destroyed by British troops in 1814. The hall, along with the Capitol, was rebuilt a few years later.

Over the years, states have unveiled so many statues that the architect of the Capitol has had to display several in other locations around the Capitol building. Mississippi is also one of the few states that still has Confederate statues on the building. Arkansas, a previous member of that list, voted to change its statute in 2019.

Since 2000, 17 states have changed their statutes, according to congressional records, and some Southern states have replaced or are replacing Confederates with modern historical figures, civil rights activists and even prominent Native Americans. Arkansas now has Bates; Virginia has Barbara Johns and Florida now has Mary McLeod Bethune, one of the most important black educators of the 20th century.

According to the National Women’s History Museum, Bates was a prominent civil rights activist in Little Rock Arkansas. Throughout the 1900s, she helped run a popular newspaper, The Arkansas Weekly, served as president of the Arkansas chapter of the NAACP, and pushed for the integration of the state’s schools after the U.S. Supreme Court considered segregation unconstitutional in 1954.

She was widely known for her efforts with the Arkansas Nine, a group of nine students whom she regularly guided and helped integrate into Central High School in Little Rock.

“She regularly drove students to school and worked tirelessly to ensure they were protected from violent crowds. She also advised the group and even joined the school’s parent organization,” the museum wrote about her.

The Arkansas chapter of the NAACP, nor the chapter representing his home county of Union, responded to several calls or messages seeking comment about Bates or the placement of his statue in Congress.

How to replace a statue, who is being considered?

Boyd said that even if the Legislature approves the replacement of Davis and George, it will need approval from a congressional committee, and locations to move the two existing statues will also need to be submitted and approved.

All costs associated with the removal of the old statues and the construction and installation of the new statues would be borne by the state.

Sen. John Horhn, D-Jackson, who spoke to the Clarion Ledger earlier this year, mentioned rock’n’roll legend Elvis Presley and blues icon BB King. Another name suggested by Democrats was famed civil rights leader Fannie Lou Hamer.

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