Unveiling the Transformation: Updates on the Melting of Robert E. Lee's Confederate Statue

The statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee, which was at the center of the deadly "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville in 2017, has been melted down into fragments and turned into a new piece of public artwork. The statue's defenders had sought to block the city from repurposing the metal, suggesting it should remain intact or be turned into Civil War cannons. However, the Charlottesville Black history museum went ahead with its plan to melt down the statue in secret at a foundry in the American South. The melted bronze will be transformed into a new sculpture to be displayed in Charlottesville.