Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee Statue Melted Down for Repurposing in Virginia

Robert E. Lee statue, once a focal point of 2017 deadly white nationalist protest, is now transformed into an emblem of racial justice and inclusivity after donation to Jefferson School African American Heritage Center.

The Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee statue in Charlottesville, Virginia, that was the center of a deadly white nationalist protest in 2017, has been melted down. The statue was donated to the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center in 2021 as part of a Swords into Plowshares project.
The project proposed to repurpose the melted statue into public art that would express the city's values of inclusivity and racial justice. The center announced that the statue had been destroyed in October 2023.
The city council's decision to remove and donate the statue followed years of debates and delays, and protests over the plan to remove the statue ultimately culminated into the violent 2017 Unite the Right rally.
The Jefferson School African American Heritage Center plans to solicit proposals on how to best repurpose the statue. While the center conducts a $4 million fundraising campaign, the melted bronze from the statue is currently molded into ingots stamped with the words 'SWORDS INTO PLOWSHARES'.
The project aims to transform the statue, once seen as a symbol of racial division, into a testament of racial equity and progress. By melting it down and transforming it into a new form of art, the community intends to bear witness to the truths about their past and their aspiration for a more equitable future.