'This was the big one:' Mayor removes Jacksonville's last prominent Confederate monument

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The last prominent public-facing Confederate monument in Jacksonville was removed Wednesday, and immediately members of Jacksonville City Council raised questions and concerns about the way it was done.

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“This was the big one. This was the last major one,” said Mayor Donna Deegan.

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Deegan authorized the removal, which began just before dawn Wednesday morning.

“This was a monument that was up in a largely Black neighborhood to a time that, shoot, those folks weren’t even recognized as human. Fully human. That’s just not right,” said Deegan.

She leveraged $187,000 of private funds to pay for the removal.

According to a 17-page opinion drafted by the Office of General Counsel, those private dollars allowed her to pull the trigger without having to go through council.

Related Story: Final Confederate monument in Jacksonville comes down in Springfield Park

“Once we got that go ahead, then it was just a matter of putting the logistics together and making it happen,” said Deegan.

Still, some members of council, including Council President Ron Salem (R-Group 2 At-Large), have questions.

“If she wanted to tear down the jail, for example, could she raise private dollars and do that?” said Salem.

Salem said he’s not personally invested in the statues one way or the other, but he questioned whether the mayor overstepped her authority by removing the monument.

He pointed out unlike the Confederate obelisk removed by former Mayor Lenny Curry from James Weldon Johnson Park in June, the Tribute to the Women of the Southern Confederacy monument in Springfield Park was publicly owned and located within a historical district.

Curry also used a state grant to fund the removal, not private funds.

“I want to make sure our branch of government is protected to where our authority is not overrun in the future,” said Salem.

“I think some council members are learning that Donna leveraged our strong mayoral form of government,” said Councilmember Matt Carlucci (R-Group 4 At-Large).

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Carlucci, a long time supporter of the monument’s removal, argued the mayor was not only allowed to take it down, she was right to do so.

“They were Jim Crow through and through and we’re way past that now. So, I think it’s a great day,” said Carlucci.

And Deegan, who campaigned on a promise to remove the statutes, said she believes it was the best move for the community as a whole.

“It is never easy when you’re trying to wrestle with one of those public issues that is divisive, but you have to just do the right thing. And the next right thing in this situation was always to make sure that people knew that their humanity was respected,” said Deegan.

But State Representative Dean Black (R-Yulee) has filed a bill that’s likely to ensure the continuation of the battle over the statue.

“History belongs to all Floridians,” said Black.

The bill would require local governments to restore monuments removed as recently as January of 2017.

If they refuse or can’t afford the cost, the bill would allow the state to restore monuments and withhold arts and culture funding from local governments to cover the cost.

“And this would be within that timeframe,” said Black.

According to the mayor the monument will be preserved and kept in city storage until there’s a final decision on where it should go next.

However, she said she’s not worried about Black’s legislation.

“I think that legislation, such as it is, is wholly unconstitutional. So, I’m not concerned about that,” said Deegan.

Deegan said she’s focused on what is next for the remaining gazebo and Springfield Park as a whole.

It’s a conversation she said she hopes the community will be involved in.

“I think that I’d love to see it be some sort of a statement about the unity of our city. That’s what I’d love to see,” said Deegan.

Carlucci argued with the statues now gone, the possibilities for Springfield Park are endless.

“I always believed that Springfield Park could not really move ahead with new plans of design and refreshing that old park until that monument was gone. I think the marble monument may remain for a while and may even be repurposed, but I think this opens the door now for opportunities for Springfield Park,” said Carlucci.

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Carlucci also suggested he may support to creation of a memorial or monument in the park dedicated to Ben Frazier, who was one of the most vocal supporters of removing the city’s Confederate monuments.

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Frazier passed away in June after a battle with cancer.

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