The status of the Confederate War Memorial in Pioneer Park, is it ready to go or not.

I went down to get photo documentation of the Confederate War Memorial in Pioneer Park. I heard there was a barricade and also that the monuments were being wrapped. I SO MUCH ENJOYED SEEING THIS.

I want to discuss some issues, but first some pictures of the barricade and monument.

There were some gaps in the wrapping placed around the fence.

So at first glance it looks like they are being wrapped up to go. This has upset the Dallas No. 6 local chapter of the UDC since they have an appeal to the Dallas Plan Commission about this. If they are wrapped up to go, it is an action that assumes that a decision by Dallas Plan Comision is already made.

https://www.facebook.com/dallas6udc/posts/10157069842906310

Also, another development is that the decision by the Dallas Landmark Commission has been appealed at the last moment. This is the article on that appeal.

https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/commentary/2019/04/02/whats-happening-dallas-confederate-war-memorial

Very critically the article mentions that the appeal comes before the Dallas Plan Commission on May 16, 2019. The elections for the Dallas mayor and for the Dallas city council is on May 4th. I don't know when the elected officials are seated. But the Dallas Plan Commission will be voting after the new City Council and Mayor has been elected. The City Plan Commission might just decide to make a decision after the new city council and mayor are sworn into office, or just delay the decision to the new City Plan Commission.

Or it could be that they are just going ahead and voting for the removal. I think that the Dallas powers that be are for the removal.

The wrapping of the monument might be for protection before the final removal or it might just getting ready for removal and the tarps are part of the method that will be used for the removal. I don't know. I tend to think that they are getting prepared for removal and the Dallas Plan Commission decision is a foregone conclusion regardless of what the local neo-Confederates might have to say.

However, I wouldn't conclude that it is a done deal. A lawsuit might be filed. Which would delay removal further. A newly seated mayor and city council might want to make a decision about the removal and review the issue. Though I think that for most newly elected city council members it is something they don't want to have to deal with. And the plan might be that the final decision will be made by outgoing committtes and commissions.

Meanwhile efforts are underway at the state Capitol to pass legislation blocking removal of monuments. With all these delays, and if the state monument bill is passed into law, the monument might be stuck here if the law takes effect before the monument is removed.

I really don't know how much real support there is for a bill to protect Confederate monuments in the Texas state legislatures and whether the Texas governor really would want to sign it, but it is a possibility.

I think the monument is going, but I don't think it is entirely a sure thing. We will need to watch after events develop.

If for some reason the monuments are delayed such that a Texas state bill makes it impossible to remove them, I am going to start a Dallas boycott campaign. It will encourage Dallas to lobby for the bills repeal. It will be an example for other cities elsewhere to not delay such that their Confederate monuments get pinned down. I have already written up a proposal for my professional society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science to boycott cities that refuse to remove their Confederate monuments or have Confederate monuments past 2020.

BUT SEEING THEM WRAPPED UP IS GREAT!