LOUISVILLE, Ky. — As more groups call for removal of Confederate statues around the United States, conversations around controversial statues in Kentucky, such as Jefferson Davis and John B. Castleman, have resurfaced.
During a briefing Thursday, Governor Andy Beshear said the statue of Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy, does not belong in the Capitol rotunda, calling it “a symbol that divides us.”
In Louisville, the John B. Castleman statue still stands in Cherokee Triangle. It has been vandalized multiple times in recent years and groups have called for its removal.
WHAS11 reached out to Attorney Steve Porter, who represents Friends of Public Art. Porter filed a lawsuit to prevent the removal of the statue and said the case is still being considered in circuit court.
Porter believes the Castleman statue is different from statues like the one of Jefferson Davis. He said Castleman was a short-term confederate soldier who later redeemed himself, serving in the U.S. army and Louisville Legion.
According to Porter, calls for removal of the Castleman statue were made with lack of information.
Other cities and states across the country have recently announced they will remove confederate monuments from public spaces. The mayor of Indianapolis announced the removal of a confederate statue from a park, and the governor of Virginia announced the removal of a statue of Robert E. Lee.
Conversations about the removal of these monuments were reignited by recent protests seeking justice surrounding the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor.
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