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A statue of Confederate Brig. Gen. J.J. Alfred A. Mouton has finally been taken down in Lafayette, Louisiana, after more than five years of advocacy by community activists.

The memorial to Mouton had loomed over the grounds of what used to be city hall for nearly a century in this Deep South parish, where, in the days before the Civil War, the number of enslaved people who were forced to work on nearby sugarcane plantations nearly equaled the population of free people.

Now, in a moment of national reckoning over the country鈥檚 history of racial oppression and the meaning of Confederate memorials, Mouton鈥檚 symbolic reign has finally come to an end.

The memorial to Mouton, a son of the city鈥檚 founding family, was taken down on Saturday, July 19, just a day after the city reached a settlement with the United Daughters of the Confederacy, which had donated it to the city.

For Fred Prejean, president of 鈥� an organization that has been campaigning for the removal 鈥� the growing movement to purge Confederate iconography from public spaces has never been more important.

鈥淚 would encourage all individuals, groups or organizations to certainly pursue the movement to remove these statues and monuments, because the history of the erection of these symbols has not been explained or taught in schools,鈥� Prejean said. 鈥淭he history of these symbols has been silenced and replaced with false narrative by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, and it is time to provide our citizens with accurate history of our nation.鈥�

鈥楩ed up鈥�

Mouton, whose father became a Louisiana governor, was born into a wealthy, plantation-owning family that settled in the region when it was still a territory of France.

Since the United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) donated the statue to Lafayette in 1922, the general has stood austerely on his pedestal, his arms folded stiffly across his chest, his hardened expression etched in stone and locked on the city, as if still at war.

For many residents, but especially for the Black community, the statue served as a constant reminder of white supremacy and the terror and violence Mouton inflicted upon enslaved people.

Last summer, after a nine-hour meeting, the city council voted unanimously to take down the statue. But the UDC filed a motion in court seeking to uphold a 1980 permanent injunction that locked Mouton in place. The path to the statue鈥檚 removal was on July 16 when the UDC agreed to a settlement under which聽 the city would pay for the removal and transportation to a new site secured by the UDC and for the design and construction of a new statue base.

Prejean and MTM activists used education to help the community understand the history of who really was 鈥� a slaver and vigilante leader.

To win over local residents, MTM mounted a multifaceted campaign that included panel discussions, documentary film screenings, appeals to the city council, presentations at the public library and peaceful demonstrations at the statue itself.

The organization鈥檚 perseverance paid off when the settlement was reached. The judge 鈥� who Prejean said was 鈥渇ed up鈥� 鈥� had only to add his signature, which he did last Friday.

鈥榃e never gave up鈥�

Prejean was relieved to hear that the statue would come down, but he didn鈥檛 know how quickly progress would be made. He received a phone call Friday night at 7 p.m. and was advised the statue would be removed promptly, at 11 a.m. the next day. Community members applauded as the statue came down.

鈥淭he behavior of the city鈥檚 residents surprised me most,鈥� Prejean said. 鈥淎 lot of residents didn鈥檛 want it moved. But it had literally been months since these residents made the claim to leave the statue where it was. They had been silent for months and months. We have done a very good education job, one that can鈥檛 be denied.鈥�

Indeed, the city council voted unanimously to remove the statue.

鈥淚鈥檓 very happy,鈥� Prejean said. 鈥淚t took us five-and-half years to educate the public, and it鈥檚 just amazing that the education process finally took hold with the city council acknowledging the history and circumstances under which that statue was placed.鈥�

Since its removal, many residents of Lafayette have complimented Prejean and MTM for the peaceful manner in which they pursued their goal.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a good feeling,鈥� Prejean said. 鈥淲e never gave up, and people are expressing their gratitude. It was a very positive, happy day.鈥�

Photo by Collin Richie聽