Statues of Jefferson Davis and Woodrow Wilson Removed From University of Texas Sunday Morning
The bronze statues of former President of the United States Woodrow Wilson and former President of the Confederate States of America Jefferson Davis were removed Sunday morning in Austin.
The statues located on the University of Texas campus were removed by crews after a failed appeal by a Confederate heritage group to a Texas Appeals Court couldn't gain support for their cause.
The Austin-American Statesman reports the statue of Davis will be placed in the Briscoe Center for American History after renovations of its building will be completed.
The story from the Statesman also gave a reason why the statue of President Wilson would be removed as well saying,
"UT-Austin President Greogry Fenves said it was no longer in the university’s best interest to continue commemorating Davis on the Main Mall. He said the Wilson statue, which stands opposite that of Davis, would be moved to maintain symmetry on the mall.
Historians note that Wilson screened “The Birth of a Nation, ” which portrayed black people as villains and the Ku Klux Klan as heroes, at the White House, and he segregated federal offices, restrooms and cafeterias."
The Houston Chronicle reported on Sunday the removal cost of the statues to be around $15,000.